Miss Melancholy
by ScarletHand2
Summary: Mischa's lonely life gets turned upside down when a certain meddling redhead pays her a visit. He brings her into a universe where Light and Dark fight for the crown and trust is a thing of the past. What's love anyway, when you dont have a heart? AxelxOC
1. The Opening Departure

Author's Note: I rewrote this story for NaNoWriMo 2008…and though I didn't get 50,000 on time (t_t), I decided to post it. So, basically, this is the re-done version of A Sky With No Stars. :)

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_There is a story we tell in my village- a fable, really, like some sort of myth. We sit around and tell it on the nights of our holidays, most of us drinking and carrying on and slurring our speech. But no matter who tells the story, or how the story is told, the moral is always the same. _

_The story is about the stars; how each of them is a unique world, and the world we live in is only a small piece of an even bigger puzzle. How, one fateful day, the stars began to blink out, one by one. The diamonds were lifted from the vast sea of blackness on which they sat, and the people who lived there disappeared with them. Only one force could overcome this darkness: the power of light. According to the story, the only tool that could unleash the awesome power, called Kingdom Hearts, is the Keyblade, the wielders of which are unbeknownst to all but a few. There are horrible creatures that thrive on the darkness inside people's hearts, and creatures that are born from the empty shell that is left behind once a heart yields to that darkness. The wielders of the darkness, the antagonists of this story, use these creatures to their advantage as an army to collect more and more hearts, and ultimately take over the world._

_The tale may come across as simply a ghost story, or a warning to get little children to listen to their mothers, but mark my words, it is true. You see, I was there; I saw things you could never imagine, and witnessed the unthinkable. I was even a part of it all. A story like mine should never be told, for at times even I cannot believe it. But I knew that boy, the wielder of the Keyblade, and he is part of my story. His name is-_

_"_Sora?"

Mischa quickly lifted her head and spun around on her heels. She peered from where she was squatted in her garden, craning her neck to see over some particularly tall tomato plants. There was a woman in a deep green day dress and a chocolate-brown shawl, her dark hair pulled back in a bun and held in place with a pair of wooden chopsticks. She appeared to be taking her young daughter for a walk to the beach, who looked as though she had just began walking and was teetering from foot to foot as she walked. Evidently the girl had just seen a seagull, for she was pointing a tiny finger towards the sky, her baby face lit up with curiosity and glee.

"No, no, honey," said the woman kindly, lightly grabbing the girl's wrist. "_Soar._ Birds _soar_ in the sky." She glanced up at the said bird and shook her head. "Sweetie, where in the world did you learn how to say a word like that? You can't even say 'mama' yet!"

They walked on and Mischa turned back to her plants with a sigh. Things like that had been happening all week to Mischa. Yesterday she couldn't drink her orange juice due to a sore in her mouth, and two days before that there was a man at the market who insisted on answering "Sort of…" to every offer asked of him. Mischa internally knew that he was just trying to avoid paying full-price for his groceries, but she found it vexing all the same.

The annoyance she had at these phonetically similar words irked Mischa like the flies that buzzed around her head while she spent time in her vegetable garden. What was so special about the sound of those words, and why did Mischa's heart race whenever she heard them?

And this word; this time had been different. The child had said _sora_, had she not? Mischa's heart had absolutely leaped when she had heard it; but why?

She sighed again and went back to plucking ripe carrots from their homes in the dirt. She had invited some neighbors from the village over for dinner tonight, and she needed to begin working on something special. Of the nineteen years Mischa had been alive, three had been spent living completely and utterly alone, and she needed to show those people that she lived in style.

She dropped a last carrot into her straw basket and stood up, brushing the dirt off of her knees. Her garden was fairly large, situated in the backyard of her cottage; in it grew potatoes, tomatoes, carrots, cabbage, onions, and various herbs used for cooking. It had all been designed and planted by her late mother, who would spend entire afternoons out here, tending to her greenery. The backyard faced the town and not the beach, which was an inconvenience to Mischa against peeping toms that were curious as to how she was coping since her parents' unexpected death but did not care enough to ask her personally. It was, however, somewhat convenient in which the seagulls had a hard time seeing the plants and therefore they generally remained uneaten.

Mischa closed the wooden gate of the picket fence surrounding the garden behind her and lugged the basketful of vegetables to her cottage. She shivered as the air suddenly became cool. The breeze coming in from the bay blew the yellow and orange leaves off of the trees and swirled them around in the air, coming to rest on the ground at Mischa's feet. She paused and unconsciously retreated a few steps, staring at the leaves in full view.

The leaves had formed the shape of a key; the part furthest away from her appeared to be some sort of handle. Her heart began to pound so hard that she placed her free hand on her chest in an attempt to calm it. Out of the corner of her eye Mischa noticed something black appear under the tree in her yard closest to the beach. She turned her head slowly, afraid of what she might see.

It was a man in a black cloak; he had it zipped up completely and its hood covered his face in shadow. There were two long silver chains hanging from the neckline of his hood with silver ovals swinging at the bottom, and a rounded silver chain where his collarbone should be. He stood with his arms folded and his head angled slightly to one side, seemingly apprehending her behavior.

"You see it, don't you?" he asked, his voice deep and mysterious. "The key formation. You see it?"

Mischa tried to speak, but her mouth was completely dry with fear. She swallowed and nodded numbly.

"How interesting," he continued, seeming to be speaking more to himself than to her. "Interesting in that you can see both the key…and me." He unfolded his arms and began walking towards the front of the cottage.

"Wait!" she cried, dropping her basket and sprinting off after the strange man. "Come back! I don't know who you-" she halted at the front of the cottage, seeing that the man had disappeared. "…are."

Over the next two hours, Mischa, after changing into something more suitable for a dinner date, spent her time bustling about her kitchen cooking dinner and trying to forget about the mysterious man. At half past six she placed three heaping plates of food onto the low table: a spinach salad with almond sauce and sautéed shrimp; several cuts of _boeuf bourguignon_, a stew with beef braised in Burgundy red wine and various small vegetables; and penne pasta smothered in a smooth tomato sauce and topped with grated parmesan cheese. Although she lived in a small town, Mischa had inherited her mother's passion for international cooking; she smiled at the memory of her mother making these very same dishes.

She stood back and admired her work. It had only taken two hours! She began to set the table for five people with the good plates and glasses from the china cabinet, placed the shiny silverware in its proper positions, poured a pitcher of strawberry lemonade and then another with ice-cold water, and then a bottle of her parent's ancient red wine and a cork opener. With a pang of realization that something was missing, she hurried outside to the front garden and plucked a few brightly colored daisies; red, pink, and orange; brought them inside and placed them in a vase of water and situated it in the center of the table. At that moment, there was a knock on her front door.

"Come in!" she called, hurriedly fixing her hair, from the kitchen, which was just off the front foyer. From the doorway came Mr. Bekku Asagi, a short, pudgy man who had a boisterous voice dressed in dinner robes; on his arm was his lovely wife Matsuba, who was thinner and had a voice as loud as her husband's but not quite as annoying; behind her was their neighbor friends Mr. Ochiba Tansho, a quiet man of medium height and glasses, and his wife Karasu, who had her long black hair pulled back into a tight bun. Both men worked at the Yoroido Fishing Company and their wives were both seamstresses. Mischa smiled and greeted them accordingly, realizing that she didn't really know them all that well.

"So 'e says to me," Asagi was saying once they were all seated and eating, "yeh'll never believe this, but 'e says to me, 'e says, 'Take these 'ere fishies back to the factory, 'cuz they smell defective!'"

"Bekku, close your mouth when you speak," said Matsuba tersely.

"So I says to 'im," continued Asagi shakily, ignoring his wife's reprimand and wiping the tears of laughter from his eyes with his finger, "I says, 'Why don't you do it yerself, damnit, yer just as bad smelling as them fishies are!'" Both he and Tansho roared in laughter.

"_Bekku!"_ hissed Matsuba. "That was totally uncalled for!" She shook her head at Mischa, who blushed and lifted some spinach to her mouth with her fork.

Asagi looked at Mischa as if he had only just realized she was there. "Hey, sweetheart, d'you minds pouring me some of that there red wine?"

"Oh, no," said Matsuba, standing up and grabbing her husband by the arm. "No wine for you; we're going home." She smiled over at Mischa. "Thank you very much for this dinner, sweetie; perhaps we can do it again when my husband isn't so…tipsy."

Mischa giggled. "Of course, Miss Asagi; anytime." And with that, Mischa was left alone at the table with the Tanshos.

Tansho was busy finishing his food and did not appear to be concerned with anything else but it. Karasu, however, placed her elbows on the table and leaned forward, peering at Mischa over the rims of her glasses.

"Mischa, dear," she began tentatively; Mischa knew exactly where this conversation was headed. "Ochiba and I have been thinking…it's been three years since your parents died." She looked thoughtfully down at her hands for a moment, then back up at her. "Aren't you…lonely here, living all alone? Don't you want a…change?"

"No," replied Mischa, even though she did. "I'm fine living here alone," even though she wasn't.

With a pang of sadness Mischa realized that the only time people seemed to care about you was when you had nothing left to care about.

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Author's Note: The chapters get MUCH longer, I can assure you lol. I figured this way, I give some more depth to my character, Mischa Tatsuyo, so she's not introduced out of the blue like in A Sky With No Stars. :)


	2. Human

Author's Note: Here's the second chapter…sorry if it's a tad bit short. *fails at writing Author's Notes*

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The sea breeze blew recklessly across the rocky cliffs of Yoroido, on the left-most side of the beach. Waves, illuminated amongst a few idle boats and buoys by the bright crescent moon, rolled in from the horizon and crashed against the jagged rocks, coating them with a fresh layer of salt water every few seconds. At the helm of these cliffs stood a lone figure, his silhouette evident against the pale, silvery light of the moon. The hem of his black cloak whipped lightly around his ankles and his hood threatened to expose his shadowed face. He was fingering the long silver chains that hung from the bottom of his hood, the oval shapes at the bottom swinging back and forth; he appeared to be waiting for something, or someone.

The man did not move one millimeter as a dark warp-hole opened behind him and another man wearing a cloak identical to his appeared and made his way across the rocks to him.

"I'm glad you finally showed up," said the first, a note of bitterness in his voice. "This place is a dump."

The newcomer gave a dark chuckle. "That may be. However, it is not this world that we are concerning ourselves with."

"Then what _are_ we concerning ourselves with?" the first one said, turning to face his apparent superior. "You said you were going to give me orders that would help us bring Roxas back."

"I will and they shall," he replied vaguely in his deep voice. "There is a girl in this town named Mischa Tatsuyo, and I believe that I am right in my indictment that she is the one we need to unleash Kingdom Hearts…and bring Roxas back."

The first one nodded slowly as if considering. "What do I need to do?"

"For now, your orders are to make sure she can fend herself against the Heartless that are bound to attack any day now." He chuckled again, more softly this time. "Show her how to use her Keyblade."

The first one scratched the back of his neck uncomfortably. "Shouldn't I at least know the full story?"

"I would tell you," replied the second smoothly, a hint of amusement in his tone, "but I cannot risk you revealing any unwanted information to her just yet." He looked out over the ocean. "All in good time, my friend; all in good time."

Mischa lay on her back in the soft sand, her hair, arms and legs splayed about her in various positions. The rocky cliffs were only a few yards away from where she lay, alone and content. She stared up at the fluffy white clouds above her, which were slowly panning horizontally across the aqua-colored sky. She squinted into the sunlight and pointed up at a particularly shaped cloud, tracing the outline with her finger. With a jolt somewhere in her heart she realized that it was in the shape of a key, just like the leaves had been just yesterday.

That thought made Mischa remember the strange man in her backyard. Had she been gardening too long, and the sun had affected her thinking ability? No one in Yoroido or the surrounding towns dressed like that; it _had_ to have been a hallucination.

She tried to assume her previous occupation of watching the clouds roll by, but the image of the cloaked man refused to leave her mind. A seagull cried from somewhere in the distance.

_Sora!_

Mischa bolted upright at this sound. There it was again. The bird had said _sora_; she knew it had to have said it. But birds can't speak! And the phonetic similarity of everything she had heard in the last week was just a coincidence.

_Psst._

She leaped to her feet and spun around wildly, looking for the source of the sound. That couldn't have been a hallucination; someone was trying to get her attention. At first she saw no one except a mother taking her little daughter on a walk, who did not appear to have paid Mischa any bit of attention. She sighed and turned towards the cliffs, not expecting anyone to be there, when she noticed a man in a black cloak and hood.

The man from her backyard! Mischa's heart leaped with both joy and fear at the sight of him; joy at knowing that he was real and she wasn't crazy, and fear at wondering what he could possibly want with her. He leaned casually against a jagged rock, and seemed to be shaking his head in disbelief at Mischa's reaction.

"Calm down, girl, I'm not going to kill you," he said with a laugh. He reached his black-gloved hands to his hood and pushed it back; for a moment Mischa thought his head was on fire, but then realized it was really a shock of spiked flaming red hair. His skin was tan and his emerald-green eyes intent, with two diamond-shaped markings on his cheeks. "The name's Axel," he clarified, pointing his index finger to his temple. "Got it memorized?"

_Got it memorized?_ Mischa narrowed her eyes and scrutinized him. Was this some kind of joke? "Who _are_ you?"

He blinked. "I just told you, the name's Axel." He rolled his eyes. "I thought you had it memorized."

Mischa folded her arms. If he wanted to give her attitude, then she could give it right back. "So what do you want?"

"See, there's the problem," he said matter-of-factly, standing up straight and taking a step towards her. "You don't understand anything."

"Well, how am I supposed to when you don't tell me anything?"

Axel let out an exasperated sigh. "I knew Xemnas was off his rocker when he said _you _were a chosen one."

"A chosen one?" The words buzzed around Mischa's ears.

"Well, not those exact words, but you get the point." His eyes scanned her red sleeveless kimono mini-dress and he nodded. "That dress needs a little more pizzazz." He lifted his hand and snapped his fingers. Mischa looked down at her dress and gasped. As if it had been a design on there all along, there was a depiction of storm clouds striking bright green lightning bolts into a choppy sea.

"What did- how did you-?" she sputtered, gaping at her dress.

Axel raised his index and middle finger to his forehead in a kind of salute and disappeared into a warp hole of darkness.

"Wait just a moment."

The computer's many blue screens buzzed and blinked, the only source of light in the dark underground room. The machine's owner, a man whose face was obscured by red wrappings, slowly spun around to address a cloaked man, who was grasping a young girl by the wrist.

"DiZ?" said the cloaked man expectantly. He yanked the girl, who was attempting to escape, closer to his side. She was pale, petite, and had stunning blue eyes and cream-colored hair swept onto one shoulder.

"Do not dispose of Naminé just yet," came DiZ's deep, droning voice. He leaned back in his chair and laced his fingers together. "We may still need her assistance."

The hooded man relinquished his grip on Naminé, who immediately ran for the doorway. He held out his palm and a dark warp hole replaced the door; Naminé skidded to a halt before it, spun around, and stared at the two men defiantly.

"Let me go!" she demanded. "I need to find Roxas."

"There's no need," replied DiZ boredly. "Sora has awakened; we have no further use for that fool Roxas."

She stomped her foot in frustration. "I don't care!" she shouted, her eyes ablaze. "I _want_ to find him."

"I'm afraid that is no longer an option," said DiZ, suddenly stern. He turned to the cloaked man. "You said your name is Ansem, correct?"

The man nodded shortly.

"Yes," he murmured mysteriously, his blue eyes narrowed. "The Organization appears to be trying a new tactic to unleash Kingdom Hearts."

Ansem seemed startled. "I…I did not detect…"

"No," DiZ agreed, "but I did." He turned back to his computer and began typing orders. "They've assigned that meddling redhead to a girl named Mischa Tatsuyo, in the village of Yoroido." One of the computer screens flashed and there was a photo of an attractive young girl with light brown hair and cerulean blue eyes. She was smiling for the camera, but her eyes lacked the sparkle of one who is truly happy.

The man called Ansem swiftly stepped closer to the screens for a better look. "For what purpose?" he wanted to know.

"I am assuming some kind of bait," DiZ answered. Then his mouth curved into a sly smile, as if he was enjoying a private joke. "Very clever, Xehanort," he said quietly to himself. "But not clever enough."

* * *

Author's Note: I'm bringing the other characters from the game in because I want to incorporate Mischa into the story, like make it seem like she was really there the whole time.


	3. Flightless Bird, American Mouth

Author's Note: Hmm…they were kinda short in the beginning…O_o Well, they get a lot longer, trust me.

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"Sora, look!" cried Goofy, pointing to the map on the Gummi Ship's large screen.

"What?" came Sora's voice from under his chair.

"What are you doing, Sora?" inquired Donald, peering at the chair curiously.

"I dropped something," he mumbled, reappearing and sitting down. "So what's going on, Goofy?"

"There's a new world!" exclaimed Donald, before Goofy could reply.

"It's true!" said Chip, one of the Gummi Ship's engineers, from a smaller screen airing from Disney Castle. "It just...appeared!"

"It's called Yoroido," piped up Dale from another small screen. "Looks like a lot of water!"

"I wonder how it appeared so suddenly," said Sora thoughtfully. "And why?"

"Gawrsh, I guess there's only one way to find out," said Goofy, reaching for the Drive button. Suddenly, a large view of Leon appeared on the screen.

"Leon!" they yelped in unison. Leon narrowed his eyes.

"Look sharp," he said with a slight smile.

Sora grinned. "So what's going on in Hollow Bastion, Leon?"

"It's the Heartless," replied Leon seriously. "There are millions of them escaping from the Castle; we need you three to come and help us right away."

"No problem!" said Donald immediately.

"But, guys," protested Goofy, "what about the new world, Yoroido?"

Sora considered this. "Well, I guess we can visit there afterwards," he said optimistically.

"Right!" said Donald brightly. "So let's go!"

---

Mischa awoke the following morning feeling confused. She sat in her double bed, staring at her kimono dress hanging on her bedroom door.

The design was really there. That means the man, Axel, is also real.

_How did he do that?_ she wondered, her eyes following the contours of the designs Axel somehow managed to make appear on the dress. _Where did he come from? Why is here?_

These questions bothered Mischa all morning as she proceeded in her normal ritual of taking a nice, warm, bubble bath, changing into her kimono dress, and eating something for breakfast.

As she was shoveling scrambled eggs into her mouth, a warp-hole appeared in the foyer and Axel himself stepped into the kitchen. Mischa dropped her chopsticks in shock and swallowed so quickly she began to choke.

"You- ack- you could've- ack- knocked!" she sputtered.

"Knock, knock," he replied with a grin. Mischa swallowed carefully and glared at him, her eyes warm with tears. His smiled faded. "Are you all right?"

"I am now," she answered, wiping the tears from her eyes. "No thanks to you."

The grin returned. "I forgot how weak you humans are," he commented, sitting down on a cushion at the table.

Mischa's mouth fell open. '_You humans'!_?

"You've got some egg in your teeth," he observed condescendingly, pointing across the table. Mischa blushed and closed her mouth.

"I'm sorry," she stammered. "It's just…I thought you were implying that you're not human."

"I'm not human," he confirmed simply, looking around at her kitchen. His eyes lingered on a framed photo of Mischa and her parents sitting outside in a garden. "Was that picture taken here?"

"You're not human," she repeated numbly. "Then…_what_ are you?"

"It's a nice picture," he said, nodding. He turned to her as if he just remembered she was there and chuckled. "You say 'what' like it's some sort of disease. I guess I'm part human."

"And what else?" Mischa was afraid of what his answer might possibly be.

"Nobody," he answered promptly, as if he were naming a nationality in his family tree. He casually flicked at a fly that had made its way onto the table.

Mischa narrowed her eyes and glared at him with a wan, scornful smile. "Very funny. Really, what are you?"

Axel paused; his eyes slowly lifted to meet hers. "Nobody. Seriously."

Something in his eyes and in his tone made Mischa believe him. "And, um, what exactly _is_ a Nobody?" she asked tentatively.

"A being created from the empty shell a human leaves behind after their heart yields to darkness," was his precise, text-book answer.

Mischa shuddered violently; Axel raised his eyebrows. "It sounds…really, really creepy," she admitted.

Axel shrugged. "It's not so bad," he said carelessly, his expression slightly disdainful. "We don't have any feelings or emotions; and some people even believe that we can't think for ourselves." He waved his hand as if to dismiss these foolish accusations. "It's as stupid as saying that yours is the only world that exists."

"What?" she inquired. "There are other worlds?"

"Of course there are," he said, as if this should have been obvious. "What did you think the stars were?"

"Stars," she answered truthfully.

He stood up and folded his arms. "Well, each of those stars is a different world. This place is basically only one in a million. You've never heard of them because…" his voice trailed off evasively. "Anyway, that's not why I'm here. I'm here to train you. Got it memorized?"

"Train me in what?" she inquired absently, still pondering Axel's definition of a Nobody and his confession about other worlds.

"In fighting, of course," he replied, examining her lack of toned muscles. Mischa blushed and covered her arms with her hands.

"I'm not weak," she protested. "Despite my size, I'm a killing machine."

Axel laughed. "Let's hope so." He walked over to the other side of the table and held out his hand to help her up. Mischa was surprised at his sudden courtesy and, as she placed her hand in his, was also surprised to find it was solid. Very cold, but solid.

He seemed to read her thoughts. "I'm not a ghost, you know."

Mischa used his hand to help herself up and smiled. "You're just not real." He grinned in return.

He led her out the front door and across the dewy grass to the cherry blossom tree in the yard. The bright morning sun reflected off of the ocean and the gulls swirled around overhead, calling into the wind. Axel reached up and effortlessly yanked a branch off of the tree and handed it to Mischa.

"The tree is your enemy," he said in a mock sage tone. "Defeat it, young grasshopper."

Mischa stared blankly at him. "It's a tree."

He rolled his eyes and sighed. "Work with me, here! Imagine the tree is someone you hate."

She thought for a moment. Someone she hated? It was more like some_thing_ she hated. Something that had replaced her loving parents with three years of pain and loneliness.

She clenched her dainty fists around the branch and advanced towards the tree, striking it as hard as she could. A few pieces of the branch scattered in various directions and wood splinters flew off of the tree where she had hit it. Axel looked disdainfully at the branch.

"I guess we'll need a new one of those," he said. He then looked up at Mischa and smiled. "For a first time at striking, that wasn't bad, kid." Mischa rolled her eyes and calmly dropped the branch to the ground.

As he was grabbing another branch, Axel asked, "I'm curious; who did you picture as someone you hated?"

She shook her head. "Not some_one, _some_thing_. I pictured Death."

"How did you picture that?" he wanted to know, his hand remaining stationary on the chosen branch.

"A man in a hooded black cloak," she answered, "with shadows over his face."

His smile became wan. "I see." He ripped the branch from the tree with a little more force than necessary and handed it to her."So what do you fear the most?"

"Death," she answered without hesitation.

Axel cocked his head to one side. "Death? I thought you hated death."

"I do," she replied serenely. "I hate it because I fear it."

"Well, you shouldn't," he said sadly. "Having no soul is much worse than dying, believe me."

Mischa considered this. Which would be better: having her parents dead but happy, or having them alive but unhappy? Having them here, but in reality gone on the inside? She supposed it would be better to be alone physically than emotionally.

"I guess you're right," she admitted. She stepped back and lifted up the branch. "Now, where were we?"

---

_Last night I dreamt that I was trapped in a white room. The cold shackles that bound me to the wall left me suspended off of the ground. I felt powerless, alone and scared; just like I did that one day. It was so long ago, but I remember it as if it happened only yesterday. I can still hear their screams in my head if I close my eyes. The outline of the sinking boat on the horizon is branded on the inside of my eyelids like a permanent mark, a scar that will never ever fade. I can still feel the sea spray on my face as I stood on those planks, watching helplessly as the boat split in two and my beloved passengers fell victim to the deadly waves of the Yoroido Sea._

_I opened my eyes and saw a cloaked man before me. His black hooded face was hidden by the shadows that took the place of his heart. I asked him what he wanted from me, and he nodded at me and replied, "Open your heart"._

_Then the room erupted in a flurry of dancing flames. _

_

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_

Author's Note: Sora becomes more important in Mischa's story a little later on. Right now, though, it's mainly Axel.


	4. Day Of Rain

Author's Note: Here we go, a little bit longer. :)

* * *

"You FOOL!"

The throne room of Castle Oblivion was full of tension that evening. Axel folded his arms and stared defiantly up at his boss. Xemnas sat in his tall throne-like chair, his fist clenched on the arm of his chair and his chest rising and falling rapidly from his angry breathing. The other members of the Organization were sitting in their respected chairs, watching both Axel and Xemnas in wonder.

"How could you tell the girl such a thing?" demanded Xemnas, slamming his other fist onto the other arm of his chair. Every sound they made seemed to echo off of the walls of the gigantic white throne room.

"Tell her what?" replied Axel nonchalantly.

"You know perfectly well what you told her!" Xemnas seemed to be seething with anger. "You informed her of the other worlds!"

"So I mentioned the other worlds," retorted Axel, throwing up his hands in a kind of surrender. "Big deal!"

Xemnas let out a yell of frustration. "You fool, the existence of the other worlds are meant to remain a secret, hence the girl's lack of prior knowledge of them!"

"You told me to show her what to do," said Axel darkly. "I figured she should at least have some idea of what she was getting into!"

Xemnas closed his eyes as if praying for patience. "She is not supposed to know what she is getting into," he said slowly, "because the only thing we need from her is her heart."

"So, let me get this straight," said Axel, narrowing his eyes. "You want me to train her, befriend her and gain her trust, and then destroy her?"

Xemnas nodded. "Essentially," he agreed.

"And by doing this, we'll all be able to live as people with actual hearts," Axel continued. "And Roxas will come back with us."

"Exactly." Then he added with a slight grimace, "I am sure that you are quite familiar with the punishment for refusing your orders."

Axel considered this for a moment. "I guess I can do it. Shouldn't be too hard."

Xemnas smiled; his anger seemed to dissipate upon hearing that remark. He suddenly vanished, then reappeared in midair, a few feet away from where Axel sat.

"I didn't think it would be too difficult for you, Axel," he said with a sly grin. "You are dismissed."

Axel teleported down to the floor and marched out of the white room with his head held high, ignoring the snickers of the other members at his humiliation.

---

Mischa leaned back in her hammock situated between two trees behind her cottage. She stared up that the fluffy clouds above, which were an orange color due to the setting sun in the distance.

_If what Axel said yesterday was true,_ she found herself thinking, _then beyond these clouds are other worlds!_

She began wondering what the worlds looked like, what the people were like...maybe the worlds didn't _have_ people; maybe there were aliens and creatures! She found herself wishing that the strange redhead would come back, so she could ask him some more questions...there was so much she wanted to learn, so much she wanted to know...

Or maybe he was only a part of her imagination, a part of a dream she had dreamt while trying to feel less lonely...

"Axel," she said softly. A smile crossed her lips as she said his name.

Suddenly, a black warp hole appeared, and out stepped the meddling redhead himself.

"You rang?" he said, dusting off his shoulders.

"Axel!" she cried, standing up. "I'm so glad to see you."

Axel gave her a puzzled glance. "Really?"

"Well, yeah," she replied, sitting back down on the hammock; the thick roping that was weaved together stretched as her weight descended upon it. "I was wondering if you could tell me more about the other worlds."

Axel let out a low whistle and leaned against one of the trees supporting Mischa's hammock. "'Fraid I can't tell you that."

"Then why did you mention it yesterday?" she replied slyly.

He glanced sidelong at her. "It slipped."

"Well, I have another question," she continued, rocking back and forth on the hammock. "What's with the get-up?"

Axel spread his arms and slowly twirled around. "You mean my dashing black coat?"

Mischa giggled. "Yeah, it's kind of...different."

"It's just a part of who I am," he said simply.

"Or who you're not," she added with a grin.

He threw back his head and laughed loudly; a few seagulls squawked and flew out of their nests in the backyard trees. "That's a good one."

She smiled, although she hadn't found it all that funny. "I don't understand, though, how you can be nobody when you have a name?"

He shrugged, his good humor evaporating. "Nobodies can't be somebodies."

Mischa shook her head. "You're not making any sense."

"The truth doesn't always make sense."

She bit her lower lip. "That's how I feel sometimes," she said softly, "when I think of my parents."

"Oh?" said Axel, trying not to seem too interested. Was her confiding a sign of building trust? "And why is that?"

"They died three years ago," she said, a faraway look in her eyes.

"How?"

Mischa stood up and smoothed out her mini-dress. "I'll tell you someday."

Axel watched her flounce past him and walk around her house towards the front. Impulsively he followed her, and found her situated on one of the cushioned chairs on the front porch.

"So, you're not going to tell me?" he found himself asking as he walked up the porch steps. The sky was rapidly darkening above them, and stormy gray clouds began to huddle over the town.

"Eventually," she answered vaguely.

A few drops of rain fell from the heavens as neither Mischa nor Axel said anything. Then, quite suddenly, the rain began to pour.

Mischa's face lit up childishly. She hopped off of the front porch of her cottage and trotted down the stone pathway. She spread her arms and twirled on the spot, lifting her head towards the stormy sky and opening her mouth to catch the rapidly falling raindrops. Axel folded his arms and watched her with curiosity, leaning against the pole supporting the porch's roof. The lanterns lining the pathway and the road lit up her profile as the world grew dark with night, while the rain made her seem to be moving in slow motion. Mischa stopped twirling and let out a laugh upon seeing the inquisitive look on Axel's face.

"What?" asked Axel defensively.

Mischa came back to the steps of the porch and looked up at him. "You look so confused!" she exclaimed with a wide grin. Her wet hair stuck to her forehead and her cheeks. "Don't tell me you've never danced in the rain before?"

Axel extended his arm out into the rain and turned his hand over, palm side up. "It's funny," he said thoughtfully. "I can't feel the rain."

"What?!" said Mischa incredulously. "That's impossible, everybody can feel the rain!"

"Not if you're nobody," he replied, examining the raindrops falling through his hand. "Like it doesn't even exist," he added softly.

Mischa shook her head. "You're very strange, Axel," she commented, grinning.

Axel smiled a little at this. "I'm just different," he said.

"Well, I'm going inside," she said, stepping onto the porch and opening the front door. She turned her head and peered at him from over her shoulder. "Are you coming?"

Axel turned his head around to look at her. "Inside?" he asked, scratching the back of his head uncomfortably. "What for?"

"Well, I'm getting tired," she answered slowly, as if speaking to a toddler. "You're welcome to stay in the guest room..."

Axel shook his head. "I don't need sleep."

Mischa gave him a strange look and opened her mouth to retort, but then seemed to think better of it.

"So I guess I'll just come back tomorrow, then?" Axel continued nonchalantly.

Mischa gave him a small smile, still holding the door open. "That'd be nice."

Without another word, she sauntered inside and closed the front door behind her.

Axel sighed and sat down in one of cushioned porch chairs. At that moment, a dark warp hole appeared; out walked a man in a black cloak identical to Axel's.

"What do you want, Xemnas?" he asked miserably. "What could you possibly want after you humiliated me in front of the entire Organization?"

"You mean what's left of the Organization," corrected Xemnas, "seeing as you have betrayed quite a few of them." He lowered his hood and sat down in a chair across from Axel. His long gray hair fell over the back of the chair, and his dark, red eyes pierced Axel's green ones. "Not that I can blame you, of course," he added. "I always thought Marluxia and Larxene were bad eggs."

"I did it for the Organization," said Axel quietly. "They were planning on turning against us."

"As I said, I do not blame you," said Xemnas. "But I have noticed that you have a knack for only pretending to be on one's side."

Axel blinked. "I only do what I do for the Organization," he replied, nettled. "I just want Roxas back with us."

"As do I," said Xemnas. "And that, Axel, is why we need you to follow your orders." Then he added, "If you do not, you will be the one to pay."

Xemnas looked at Axel expectantly as he thought for a moment. "I will," he answered finally. "I'll do it for the Organization."

"That is good to hear," replied Xemnas. He stood up and lifted his hood back over his head. "And remember, Axel," he added over his shoulder as a dark warp hole appeared, "even though we do not yet have hearts, you must still be vigilant."

And with that, he disappeared, leaving Axel to mull over his own lost thoughts.

---

_There is a breeze today that calmly blows the pink petals of a cherry blossom tree around in circles in the clear air. The sky seems to blend in with the choppy ocean waves of the Yoroido Bay and the light, wet sand glistens in the bright sunlight, unobscured by wispy white clouds. Under the tree sits a young girl with hair as black as the raven's wing and eyes as blue as the sky itself. She strums her _shamisen_, humming softly to herself and looking around curiously, blinking her almond-shaped eyes._

_She looks up suddenly and stares at some people strolling along the pebble pathway towards the sea. It is the boss-man, the president of the Yoroido Fishing Company, and he is accompanied by two beautiful ladies in colorful silk kimono and white faces with bright red lips. The kimono of the woman on the left is icy blue, lighter than that of the sky, and had small embroidered green clovers soaring around, as if a breeze had just caught them and was carrying them as it pleased. On the president's left was an eruption of flame; the kimono was black with orange and red flame designs and golden embroidery, with a golden _obi_. They are smiling and laughing with the president, who also appears to be in high spirits._

_The girl's eyes widen with longing at the sight. They walk a few feet in front of her, and she, quite unable to contain herself, gracefully stands up and hurries to the blue geisha._

_"Excuse me, ma'am?" She speaks timidly, wringing her hands together and glancing down at her sandaled feet. She is anxious at being in such close proximity to a woman of such grace and beauty._

_They all three pause in their stroll and look down at her expectantly. She looks up at them admiringly. _

_"You are such beautiful geisha," she says shyly; warm smiles cross the white faces of the two women. "One day I will be as graceful as you!"_

_The smile of the fiery geisha turns wan. "It takes many, many years to become like us, young miss," she replies dubiously._

_The child smiles brightly, unaware of the woman's doubt. "I will learn, and I will try harder than anyone to be a geisha!"_

_The other geisha, the one in the blue kimono, lifts the girl's face gently with one dainty finger and with her thumb brushes aside some of her stray black hair. "You have an abundance of water in your soul," she murmurs, examining her blue eyes. "What is your name, dear?"_

_"Ogata Shiro," the girl answers promptly, absolutely glowing at the woman's touch._

_The geisha retracts her hand somewhat reluctantly and smiles even more broadly. "My dear, you are destined for great things," she says confidently. "All in due time."_

_The girl watches in awe as the two geisha and the president gracefully walk on down the path, the breeze lightly tousling her black hair and dreams filling her eyes._

_I awoke with pink blossoms swirling, dancing in front of my eyes. I reached out to touch them, to hold them in my hand, but they disappeared and I realized that they were simply an illusion. Seeing my mother sitting under that cherry tree was simply, simply an illusion._

_Of course, what happens to a dream deferred? Does it fly away as easily as petals on a breeze? Or does it come to rest right there, in the palm of your hand? _

_

* * *

  
_

Author's Note: La dee da. :)


	5. Lazarus

Author's Note: I had to do a little research for this chapter (i.e. read Memoirs of a Geisha lol).

* * *

Sora stood, flanked as usual by Donald and Goofy, in the town square of Hollow Bastion, Keyblade at the ready. The square was dark and quiet; Donald yelped as a mouse scurried across the pavement. The candles in the windows of the shops had been blown out and the only light came from the moon in the deep sky. Suddenly, the sound of running footsteps broke the eerie silence; the threesome whirled around to see Leon, sword in hand, coming to a halt at Uncle Scrooge's ice cream freezer.

"Follow me," he said shortly, his deep voice quiet but still echoing in the square. Sora ascended the small stairway two at a time and followed Leon down the large stairway towards Merlin's house, Donald and Goofy trailing on his heels.

Outside Merlin's house, small Heartless creatures appeared out of midair and danced before them. Leon nodded at Sora and they slashed left and right, Donald with his Mage's Staff and Goofy with his Knight's Shield, until the Heartless were sufficiently gone. They proceeded inside the house with haste.

Yuffie, Aerith, and Cid turned around at the sound of the door opening. Yuffie bounded towards them, seemingly full of energy despite the visible dark circles beneath her eyes.

"Yuffie's been on nightwatch duty," said Leon unnecessarily.

Yuffie nodded. "The Heartless are starting to come out of the castle at nighttime."

Aerith's soft voice thoroughly contradicted Yuffie's spunky one. "We think it's because since the Heartless thrive on darkness, they're more powerful at this time."

Sora considered this. "So what do you guys want us to do about it?"

They exchanged uncomfortable glances. Cid spoke up from his seat at the computer. "We're, uh, not really sure if there's anything we can do about it."

Yuffie smiled pleadingly. "We know you're really busy, but-"

"-we thought you might have some spare time to help us hold them off," finished Leon.

Sora looked thoughtfully at Donald and Goofy. Goofy looked worried. "But, Sora, what about that world Yoroido?"

"Yoroido?" said Cid sharply; everyone turned to look at him. "Whatchyou talking 'bout, boy? I ne'er done heard of a place like that."

"It's a new world," said Donald hopefully. "It just appeared on the map!"

Cid nodded slowly, looking unconvinced. "Well, y'all just be careful now."

"So can you stay for a little bit?" inquired Yuffie, her eyes shining.

"Sure," said Sora. "We've got some time."

---

_The salty smell of the sea breeze wafts across her face as a teenage girl sits on the bench, staring down at the ground. She is on a large boat, which is rocking very gently against the waves. The boat is not far from the shore, their trip ending. There are small children running about, but she ignores them as she continues to stare down. She is looking into the depths of the sea through a glass bottom window, waiting for a creature to appear. She is aware that the creature exists only in legend, but is curious all the same._

_Suddenly, she catches a glimpse of it. It is a gigantic fish, bigger even than the boat, with a strange emblem on its forehead. It swims back and she sees it again, this time closer. She jumps up in excitement and runs to the captain's cabin, shouting that she has seen it, she's seen the legendary Namazu. All color in the captain's face drains and he begins to shout fearfully. Adults begin herding their children towards the safety boats, and the small children pile in. The girl's parents come running towards her and point to the boat._

"_Get in the boat," the father directs, lightly pushing her towards it. "Mischa, dear, get in the boat with the other children and we'll meet you ashore." _

_The girl turns around and her mother kisses her forehead and then shoos her to the boat. She reluctantly gets in, eyes on her parents, who look worried. The boat drops into the ocean, and the girl grabs an oar and begins to row as fast as she can towards the docks. She does not look back until she is a few yards from the dock and feels a low rumble in the water. She and the children turn around and gasp as the gigantic catfish bursts out of the water, its red eyes blazing; the sky above it suddenly turning dark and stormy._

"_Namazu!" exclaims one of the children, pointing at the creature. The girl shushes her and continues rowing towards the shore. She wants to get to shore before the waves start coming in._

_Reaching the sand, she helps the children out of the boat and then scrambles up the bank to the docks. She stands on the very edge of the wood, scanning the ocean for her parents' safety boat while shading her face from the whipping wind mixed with sea spray. The children huddled behind her, whispering and crying in fear. _

_Suddenly, the girl sees a safety boat of adults rowing towards shore. Her heart leaps at the sight, although she cannot see who is in the boat. A bolt of lightning strikes the main boat and the captain's cabin erupts in flames; the catfish rears its giant head and dives into the sea, causing a colossal wave to form, headed towards shore. The children screamed and ran down the bank to meet their parents; the girl looks over the wood and her heart freezes as she realizes that her parents had not been on that boat. The adults scoop up their children and run for it, back to the town and the safety of their homes._

"_Wait!" the girl screams, flailing her arms. "Where are my parents?"_

_The wave comes quickly and knocks her over. She sits up, soaked to the skin, and watches as the main boat begins to sink rapidly. She notices a black figure standing calmly at the helm of the boat and screams for it to help her. Thunder rumbles and rains begins to fall from the heavens as the boat disappears from sight._

_Her tears mingling with the rain, the girl, embraced with her heartbreak and agony, screams._

_---_

Three more days went by thus: Axel appeared in her kitchen every morning, Mischa vaguely refused to tell him about her parents' deaths, and he dragged her outside to practice on the cherry tree with a fairly durable branch. Mischa took delight in having him around, both for finally having a companion and for him himself. Her heart leaped at the sight of his flaming red hair in her doorway, and a smile formed on her lips whenever she spoke his name.

Axel, on the other hand, seemed only concerned with her ability to fight. He was evidently satisfied at her improvement in fighting, for on the fourth day he happily declared that she was ready.

"Ready for what?" she wanted to know, sipping her morning tea. She had become so accustomed to Axel showing up every morning while she was eating breakfast that she had bathed and dressed before even steeping foot into the kitchen.

"Ready for whatever comes," he answered. They were sitting at opposite ends of the table, the early morning sun pouring in through the windows.

"And what _is_ going to come?" she inquired, knowing fully well that he wasn't going to tell her.

"You'll see," he replied vaguely, staring down at the table as if lost in thought. "Just remember to keep control of your heart. That's very important."

Mischa nodded. "If there is one thing my parents taught me, it's to keep my heart remaining constant and strong." She was looking at the flower on the table, not at him.

Axel quickly raised his head to look at her. There was the key word. "Your heart, huh?"

She nodded slowly, as if deep in thought. "Yes. It's what's kept me going these past few years, since my parents died."

_How interesting_, thought Axel. _Xemnas chose her because of her strong heart._ "And, uh, what was it that happened to your beloved parents?"

"I'll tell you someday," she answered again.

"Mmm," replied Axel, pretending to take offense. "Or maybe you could tell me _to_day?"

"Or maybe," she said in a mock dramatic tone, "I could show you." Her eyes flickered up to meet his.

"Seriously?" he asked, not sure whether or not to believe her.

"Seriously." She gracefully stood up- she had a habit of doing that, Axel noticed- and walked over to a door that Axel had not noticed before. It was situated on the leftmost side of the kitchen area, next a small table. She tugged it open by the doorknob and motioned for Axel to follow her down the stairs that appeared behind the door.

Lanterns dimly lit the stairwell as Mischa slowly descended, Axel following close behind. The stairs were straight and narrow, but the floor was not too far below. Once her feet touched the surface of the stone floor, Mischa shivered as if a draft had blown into the room.

The room contained many, many shelves, and on each tier appeared to be many, many boxes. There looked to be about four shelves on each side of the crowded room, each with four tiers. There were lit lanterns above each shelf, and at the far center of the room, situated against the stone wall, was a little table with a framed photo and two candles burning on either side.

"What are all these boxes?" Axel wanted to know.

"Kimono," answered Mischa, lifting one off of a shelf. "My mother was a geisha. These are all of the kimono she had acquired over the years."

Axel nodded, having not the faintest notion what geisha and kimono were. He cleared his throat. "Well, um, I'm sure that's very nice…"

Mischa sensed his confusion and giggled. "Kimono are a type of Japanese clothing; sort of like dresses. And geisha are a kind of artist. They wear kimono, beautiful make-up, and entertain businessmen that are in town by dancing, playing instruments, and talking with them at teahouses."

"And your mother was one of these women?" asked Axel skeptically.

"She was," corrected Mischa softly. "She was until she met my father and had me."

"How did they meet?"

A faraway glint appeared in her eyes, though her face remained serene. "He was a fisherman," she began. "My dad was. And my mother was Kikisui, one of the most renowned geisha in the Ogata district. That was her geisha name, though; her real name was Ogata Shiro. She was guided by her older sister, the beautiful Shasui."

A million questions were forming on Axel's tongue. "Your aunt?" he inquired, taking a seat onto a stray box.

Mischa giggled. "Oh, no, Shasui wasn't _really_ her older sister," she explained. "You see, when a girl wishes to become a geisha, an older and more experienced geisha- in this case, Shasui- takes the aspiring geisha under her wing and teaches her what she needs to know, and starts her on her path."

"Kind of like me and you," he said absently.

There was a brief silence.

"Let's go for a walk," said Mischa suddenly; Axel looked up in surprise. "I want to show you something."

As he followed Mischa up the stairs and out of the house, Axel voiced his misgivings. "Are you sure it's a good idea to…well, walk with me in…you know, public?"

Mischa laughed at his uncertainty. "It's all right, really; people think I'm crazy anyhow."

They were outside now, walking on the lane outside Mischa's front yard. Axel courteously held out his arm; Mischa giggled and linked her arm through his.

"Crazy?" Axel flinched as a flock of seagulls swooped down close to his head. "Why's that?"

She shrugged. "When my parents died, of course they granted me pardon from having a job and paying taxes, for mourning and what have you…but recently I've started to see things, and they all think I'm crazy. I suppose they think I'm so stricken with grief that I've started hallucinating." She waved at some women chatting in a circle outside a house two doors up from hers; they waved back reluctantly, eying Axel curiously.

"And do you believe that?" They turned down another lane to the right, which did not have any houses but was completely surrounded by trees; the nearby ocean was invisible from here.

She laughed. "I guess a little," she admitted. "The thing I keep seeing is like, the most random thing in the world. Oh, and I've also been hearing something, too," she added as an afterthought.

"And what is it that you've been seeing and hearing?" he asked, his curiosity growing.

"A key," she answered promptly; his arm tightened. "And I keep hearing the word _sora._"

Axel completely halted in the road, his face blanched.

Mischa looked up at him. "Axel?" she asked, a trifle worried.

"What was it that you wanted to show me?" he asked, his voice strained.

"It's this way," she directed, leading him off the road and through the density of the trees. They stepped over roots and pushed past branches, miraculously avoiding scratches as they stumbled into a clearing. It was a small meadow, completely surrounded by trees but large enough that it contained a small waterfall and pool. There was a cherry blossom tree much like the one in Mischa's yard on the bank of the pool, and it was to here that Mischa led a curious Axel.

"This is…nice," he said earnestly, his previous troubles seemingly evaporating. He sat down under the tree next to Mischa. "How did you find this place?"

"My mom showed it to me when I was a little girl," she said distantly, as if enjoying a far-off memory. "We would come here and have picnics sometimes."

"You never finished telling me the story of your parents," he reminded her. She grinned.

"You're right," she admitted. "Well, my mother had been dreaming of becoming a geisha practically her whole life. One day, when she was young, she was sitting under a cherry tree and noticed the president of the Yoroido Fishing Company walking with two geisha; one of them was Shasui. My mother approached them and spoke to them, which was very unheard of at the time; like a normal person approaching a celebrity. Shasui was kind to her and took particular notice of her eyes, which were as blue as the ocean under the sunlight." She looked up at him and fluttered her eyelids. "I have them, too."

Axel leaned forward a little to inspect them, not noticing the color until now. "They are pretty," he said thoughtfully. "Does the color mean anything?"

"It means I have a lot of water in my soul," she answered. "We learned the meanings in school, but I never thought it was all that important." She shrugged. "Anyway, a few years later, Shasui remembered my mother and came looking for her. She was working in an _okiya_, or a boarding home where a geisha lives that pays for her training. Shasui was so successful and so renowned that she had paid her debts to her _okiya_ and purchased her own apartment. So one day, she stopped by the _okiya_ and had a little chat with the proprietress that owned the place. They made an agreement, and a few months later my mother was well on her way in training."

"What did she have to learn?" Axel wanted to know, becoming genuinely curious. "Was there actually a school for geisha?"

She nodded. "Yes, there was. The school taught things like how to dance and sing and play the _shamisen_, which is like a three-stringed guitar. Shasui taught her other things, like how to correctly pour tea, how to apply her make-up, and how to keep the elaborate hairstyle the geisha wore intact while she slept."

"And those things were important for geisha to know?" he asked, slightly appalled. "It sounds like a lot of work."

She nodded gravely. "It was a lot of work. But it was very important for a geisha to be graceful and charismatic, you see, because the more influential men liked her, the more often they requested her to entertain at the teahouses when they were in town. When that happened, both the geisha's status and her income grew. But before any of that happened, my mother and Shasui had to partake in the ceremony that bound them as sisters. It was then that my mother was given the name Kikisui."

"It sounds like it was all about fame and fortune," he commented.

"Most of it was, I suppose. But my mother genuinely loved being a geisha. She gave it up, though, when she met my father." She smiled at the memory. "He was a fisherman who had come to the geisha districts to deliver fish to the teahouses. His trip had somehow gotten delayed, so he arrived in the evening, when geisha were entertaining in the teahouses. The first teahouse he visited happened to be the one my mother was working in, and when he was carrying the crates to the back room, he caught a glimpse of her through the doorway and stopped. She looked up at him from pouring tea and their eyes met; I suppose you could call it love at first sight."

She stopped for a moment, relishing the memory. Axel raised his eyebrows. "So, then what happened?" he prodded.

She laughed at his interest. "Well, geisha were not allowed to love; they were to do their job and that was that. So my mother snuck out of her _okiya_ every night to see my father; and one day, Shasui caught her. She told my mother that she had only two options: to quit being a geisha and be with my father, or forget about my father and continue being a geisha. My mother chose the former; so they married and moved out here to Yoroido and eventually had me."

She said nothing more and Axel realized that she had finished. "So, uh, how did they die?"

Mischa opened her mouth to speak, but was cut off by the distraction of a sparkle that had appeared near her hand. It circled down the length of her bent leg and then a key-shaped weapon took its place. The large handle grip lay in Mischa's open palm, the blade touching her foot, and hanging from the handle was a chain with a small fish charm at the end.

"Oh," said Axel absently, staring at the Keyblade. He stood up quickly and Mischa yelped as he grabbed her forearm. "C'mon, it's time."

* * *

Author's Note: I changed her weapon to the Keyblade cuz I thought it would be more fun to write about. :)


	6. I Caught Myself

Author's Note: Song break! This is "I Caught Myself" by Paramore.

* * *

Down to you,  
You're pushing and pulling me down to you.  
But I don't know what I…  
Now when I caught myself, I had to stop myself.  
I'm saying something that I should have never thought.  
Now when I caught myself, I had to stop myself  
From saying something that I should have never thought of you.

You're pushing and pulling me down to you,  
But I don't know what I want,  
No, I don't know what I want.

You got it, you got it,  
Some kind of magic.  
Hypnotic, hypnotic,  
You're leaving me breathless.  
I hate this, I hate this,  
You're not the one I believe in.  
With God as my witness…

Now when I caught myself, I had to stop myself,  
I'm saying something that I should have never thought.  
Now when I caught myself, I had to stop myself  
From saying something that I should have never thought of you.

You're pushing and pulling me down to you.  
But I don't know what I want,  
No, I don't know what I want.

I don't know what I want,  
But I know it's not you.  
Keep pushing and pulling me down,  
But I know in my heart it's not you.

Now when I caught myself, I had to stop myself,  
From saying something that I should have never thought.  
Now when I caught myself, I had to stop myself  
From saying something that I should have never thought of you.  
I knew, I know in my heart it's not you.  
I never know what I want, I want, I want,  
Oh no, I should have never thought.

---

_In a blur my dreams have suddenly become a reality. I've kept my heart locked for so long that I never thought it would ever open again. For the first time in years, I don't feel alone and scared; I feel happy._

_I've finally found the key to open my heart; or, at least, I feel like I have. This strange, meddling redhead of a man has captivated me like no other; probably because he is the only one that has tried to unlock my heart. Even if he technically doesn't exist._

_I don't know where I'm going and I don't know why; I don't know whether I should be excited or terrified; but all I do know is that I don't want it any other way._


	7. New Divide

Author's Note: I'm not very skilled at writing about physical pain. Bear with me, please.

* * *

_Thrash!_ Sora finished off a final Heartless and turned to face the others. They had knocked the Heartless out in record time, and now they stood on the cliffs outside the decrepit castle. Sora was about ready to leave this place.

"Nice job!" exclaimed Yuffie, stashing away her ninja knives.

"It should keep the Heartless at bay for a while," added Aerith kindly. "Thanks so much for your help, guys."

"No problem!" said Goofy and Donald in unison. Sora rolled his eyes.

"So if you'd like to go and visit that new world, be our guests," muttered Leon. He nodded at Sora. "We'll see you again soon."

Sora nodded back and saluted the rest of them with his middle and index fingers. Then the threesome turned and marched back to the town, in search of their Gummi Ship.

---

Mischa held tightly onto Axel's hand as he led her running towards the beach. His grip was strong but icy cold; so cold that Mischa had shivered violently upon contact. The sky had become dark and the town had become strangely empty as they ran along the streets, the sea horizon becoming visible above the asphalt.

"Axel, what's going on?" shouted Mischa as they slowed down onto the beach, kicking up sand. "Why are we here? What is this key?"

Axel took a deep breath and turned to look at her. "The Heartless have come to take over this world. They're born from the darkness in people's hearts, and the only way to defeat them is to use that key. Got it memorized?"

Mischa paused, trying to absorb this information. "Why didn't you tell me this sooner?" she demanded accusingly.

"I wasn't allowed to," he replied truthfully.

Suddenly a small black creature appeared before them, dancing from tiny foot to tiny foot and its small antennae twitching as if it sensed something. Mischa shrieked and stepped back, and the creature's big yellow eyes blinked and focused on her.

"That's a Heartless?!" she exclaimed, pointing at it in shock. The Keyblade in her hand began to twitch toward the Heartless, who shied away from it as if it had some kind of contagious disease.

"Yep," replied Axel, looking disdainfully at the creature. "Pathetic, isn't it?" He turned and gestured to the Keyblade. "You have to use that to destroy them."

"Them?" she said uneasily. She jumped as more creatures began appearing one by one in a circle around them. "How many are there?"

"It's hard to say," he said truthfully, spreading his arms at waist-level. Two large, round, spiked weapons appeared in both of his hands. "Normally when there's a Keyblade around, a lot."

Suddenly a large orange ship veered into view. Axel, who apparently knew the inhabitants of the ship, waved to it and it descended onto the sand. A door opened and out flew a duck wearing blue clothing and carrying a Mage's staff; a tall dog walking upright and carrying a shield with a mouse emblem; and a boy with spiked brown hair, carrying a weapon almost identical to the one in Mischa's hand.

"You!" she shouted, motioning for the threesome to come over. "You've got one of these, too!" She waved the Keyblade in the air; the creatures hissed and backed away a little.

The boy, arriving with his strange comrades, stared at Mischa in confusion. "A Keyblade?" He looked at Axel, puzzled. "Who is she? Why does she have a Keyblade?"

"I'll explain later," he said hastily. "Let's just take care of these things, first."

The boy nodded and gripped his Keyblade in both his hands. His first strike knocked out three creatures, which disappeared and colorful hearts floated up into the heavens.

"You've got a lot of explaining to do," said Mischa accusingly. Axel winked at her and spun his chakrams around in his hands; flames burst out of the spikes and singed the creatures in front of him. Mischa decided to follow the boy's lead and strike at the creatures. The duck shouted "Thunder!" and a bolt of lightning sprang down from the sky and knocked out a few more Heartless. The dog hoisted his shield, which looked heavy, and plowed through a crowd of creatures.

As soon as the creatures disappeared, the newcomers turned on Axel. He held up his hands.

"Sora, I'm telling you, I don't know anything," he said pleadingly. Then he lowered his voice. "Xemnas just told me that I needed to help Mischa learn how to fight. He didn't tell me why or anything else like that. Got it memorized?"

"Why does she have a Keyblade?" the boy, Sora, wanted to know.

"I don't know," he replied honestly.

Mischa, who had not been listening and was instead standing at the edge of the shore, watching the clouds move rapidly across the sky, shouted something about a storm.

"That's no storm," said the duck, coming up behind her. His voice was extremely nasal and difficult to comprehend. "We have to fight a giant Heartless."

"Welp, how do ya know that, Donald?" asked the dog in his goofy-sounding tone.

"Because, Goofy, why else would there be a storm brewing when Heartless attack?" replied Donald impatiently.

"Gawrsh, I wonder what it is," said Goofy thoughtfully. "And where?"

"Maybe we have to ride that boat out to sea to find out," said Sora, pointing to a safety boat that had washed onto shore. All five of them piled into the boat; Mischa looked at it warily and joined them reluctantly upon a gesture from Axel. He and Sora both grabbed oars and began to row.

Mischa and Donald shrieked as Heartless in the form of piranhas jumped out of the water around them, their tiny, razor-sharp teeth barely missing their limbs. When one came flying at Mischa, Axel shouted "Oi!" and swung his oar at it, knocking it back into the water. Mischa beamed in thanks and he winked in return; her heart fluttered wildly.

Suddenly, the surface of the water began to tremble. A rumble sounded from the bottom of the sea and the color completely drained out of Mischa's face.

"Namazu," she whispered. Axel turned abruptly towards her and shot her a questioning look.

"It's a gigantic catfish," she explained, "capable of creating earthquakes. It used to be only a myth, but..." her voice trailed off reflectively.

"But?" he prodded impatiently.

She shook her head. "Let's just say, I've seen it." Her eyes momentarily filled with tears. "It's why I haven't gone out to sea for three years."

Axel stared at her for a moment, his brain working rapidly. Then dawning comprehension lit up his face. "It killed your parents, didn't it?"

She nodded weakly. "I can't believe I'm going to have to see it again..."

Sora cleared his throat. "Well, um, this is all very touching, but..." he pointed out a little ways ahead of the boat. "I think this Namazu thing is about to rear its ugly head."

As if on cue, the head of a giant fish shot out of the water, its whiskers trembling under the weight of the water, which fell in giant droplets around them. Its red eyes glowed as it took heed of them floating helplessly in the boat.

"It's a Heartless!" cried Donald, pointing at the strange emblem on the fish's forehead. Sora and Goofy jumped up and brandished their weapons, Donald and Axel doing the same. The threesome leaped onto the fish's fin and climbed up it, grabbing onto one of its whiskers and holding on tightly. The fish, perturbed at their invasion, thrashed from side to side.

"Shouldn't we help them?" asked Mischa, watching Sora struggle to hold onto the fish's whisker.

Axel looked concerned. "I'm not sure if you're ready for this."

She puffed up defiantly. "I am so! I can handle anything."

Axel smiled. "If you're sure, then follow me." He gripped his chakrams and leaped off the boat and onto the fish's fin. He held the weapons out at waist-level and ran up the surface, the chakrams igniting as he spun them. Mischa gripped her Keyblade determinedly and then stopped.

This was the creature that killed her parents.

She looked up at its face and a wave of hatred came over her as she pictured her parents' smiling faces. Resolute, she leaped off the boat and onto the fin, staggering a little as she landed. Axel turned and surveyed her progress; she flashed him a thumbs-up and began sprinting up the surface until she reached him, standing on the fish's shoulder.

"You all right?" he said with a grin, flinging a flaming chakram into the air and then catching it expertly. "You looked a little shaken up back there."

"I'm fine," she lied. "Let's just get this over with." She heard a shout and whipped around in time to see Sora flying towards her. She held out her Keyblade horizontally in defense and Sora's blade bounced off with a _clang!_, sending him flying back where he came from.

Mischa plunged her Keyblade into the fish's scales and a bolt of lightning cracked as it let out a howl of rage. Suddenly, Mischa felt the monster fish's upper body sway to the side and pulled her Keyblade out of the fish's skin, back into the safety of her grip. Half a second later, she was flying backwards, a sharp pain searing in her chest and her eyes squeezed shut, zooming across the sea and back towards the town. She would have tried to stop herself, but her body had numbed with pain and shock. She felt herself lose momentum and her height dwindled, sending her crashing into a stone wishing well in the town square.

Her back erupted in a sensation that could only be described as burning, and for a moment Mischa thought she had landed on a fire pit. But, judging by the rubble surrounding her limp body as she slowly pried open her eyes, she had landed somewhere far worse. A fire she could put out and treat the burns; but a broken back was harder to fix.

She shook her head in an attempt to dismiss all thoughts related to giving up, even though her back throbbed and her legs had lost their feeling. She supposed, staring down at her legs, which were slowly turning a shade of blue, that temporarily losing feeling in her legs was a good and a bad thing; good because she was relieved of that further pain for the moment; and bad because she did not know why there was no feeling. She did notice, however, through the ripped part of her boot, that she was able to wiggle her toes.

She looked down at her arms and came to the conclusion that the fish had whacked her away from the red rashes that covered them and her neck. She closed her eyes faintly, partly afraid of what other injuries she had sustained during the past minute and partly trying to ignore the pain in her back. The pain subsided only a little as she breathed in and out, in and out, waiting for what; she wasn't sure.

On one hand, Mischa pondered as she continued to take deeps breaths, she knew that she was lucky to be alive, let alone conscious. If this had been a normal situation (which it wasn't), her spine would have been crushed and she would have been completely paralyzed from the neck down (which she wasn't), and the townsfolk would have noticed everything going on and come running out of their cottages to rush her to the hospital (which they weren't). In fact, Mischa noticed, moving only her eyes as her neck seared with fire-like pain whenever she tried to move it, the entire town seemed to be deserted, with the exception of herself, Axel, and the three newcomers. Had they all known about the Namazu? Is that what the women were whispering as she and Axel had walked arm-in-arm down the street earlier today? Was the coming of the Namazu Axel's doing? But how would the townsfolk have found out about it and she, Mischa, didn't?

She groaned aloud; this was too much thinking for someone who had just been slammed into a stone well. Suddenly, she saw a flash of black and orange coming towards her; squinting her eyes she could tell that it was Axel himself, chakrams ablaze.

"Misch," he said breathlessly, dropping his chakrams (which he had just extinguished) and coming to kneel next to her, on her right. She looked up at him with only her eyes, which unconsciously filled with tears at the sight of his worried face. He had never given her a nickname before.

"Axel," she croaked, her voice dry and broken. "I'm fine, I just-"

He put his gloved hand gingerly over her mouth. "No no, don't speak, you're hurt enough as it is." He craned his neck to examine her back. "Ouch. Man, that doesn't look good."

"Humph," was all she could manage of a laugh; it hurt too much. He removed his hand so she could speak. "What happened...with the...Namazu?" Great; now she was coughing as well.

"We took care of it," he said dismissively. "This isn't over, though."

"It…isn't?"

"Not by a long shot," he said grimly. "The townsfolk are all gone, and that can only mean one thing: the Heartless aren't done with this place." Mischa coughed again and his eyes widened as he saw what was on her hand: blood. "You're...you're coughing up blood," he said warily. "That definitely can't be good." He stood up and cupped his hands to his mouth. "SORA! MISCHA'S HURT!"

She heard a vague shout in the distance and before she knew it, Sora, Donald, and Goofy were all standing around her, eyes wide with worry.

"What happened?" Sora wanted to know. He jumped as a sharp intake of breath made Mischa cough up more blood. "Is she..." His voice faltered at the sight of the red liquid.

"She's hurt!" exclaimed Donald irritably. "That's not rocket science, Sora!"

"Gawrsh," muttered Goofy, stroking his chin thoughtfully. "Maybe we should take her to Merlin's?"

The threesome looked at one another, considering. Axel tapped his foot impatiently.

"While she's still alive, guys," he snapped.

Sora nodded resolutely. "Okay, let's take her to Merlin. He'll know what to do." Axel helped him gingerly lift Mischa's limp body from the niche in the stone well and Donald and Goofy held her legs level as they marched back to the orange ship.

"Guys, I'm fine," she protested weakly.

Axel looked down at her skeptically. "Right," he replied sarcastically. "That's why you can't move your legs, because you're perfectly fine."

She rolled her eyes and looked up at the sky. It was still dark, and the storm clouds were beginning to swirl slowly; she didn't find it at all odd that none of the street lamps had been lit.

"Hurry," directed Axel. "Let's get her out of here." His green eyes floated up towards the sky. "I have a bad feeling about this."

Sora and the others followed his example and scrutinized the sky as well. Then Sora's face lit up with comprehension. "That's what the sky looked like before my island disappeared!"

Mischa, who had been trying to swallow so her throat would not be so dry, choked on her saliva. "What?"

"Let's just go," said Axel quickly.

Mischa rolled her eyes down as far as they would go in her eye sockets to see ahead of them. The big orange space ship was looming into view, its door opening automatically. Her injuries were suddenly causing her to flit between conscious and unconscious, and what felt like a second later she opened her eyes to find herself strapped down onto a metal table.

"What the-" she sputtered, her eyes moving frantically around the interior of the ship. From somewhere to her left, Axel let out a bark-like laugh.

"Relax, Misch," he said, stepping towards her, "the straps are so you won't fall off of the table and hurt yourself even more."

The sight of Axel calmed her nerves; she felt the adrenaline slowly leave her veins. "Are they...going to...take me somewhere?"

He nodded, glancing behind him. "They're prepping the ship, and then they're going to take you to a wizard."

"A wizard?" she replied dubiously. Her voice was still dry and husky.

"Merlin, yeah." He scratched the back of his neck uncomfortably and looked up at the ceiling of the ship. "I don't know much about him, but if he can heal you..." his voice trailed off.

Mischa pursed her lips. "Aren't you coming?" Her heart leaped in her broken chest.

He looked down at her and smiled wanly. "No, I have some work to do."

"Work?" She felt the happiness melt away. "But...I'll see you again soon...right?"

For some reason she noticed a flicker of uncertainly move across his face. Then it was gone. "Sure, Misch. I'll come and make sure you're still breathing."

She smiled, but it was only on the outside. "I'll be waiting."

He saluted her with a grin and backed into a warp-hole of darkness. At that moment, Sora, Donald, and Goofy bounded into the ship, looking slightly disheveled.

"Mischa, I think we fixed it!" exclaimed Goofy. Donald shushed him furiously.

Cold pangs of anxiety prickled on Mischa's skin. What kind of creatures did Axel leave her with?

"It wasn't broken," said Sora defiantly. "If it was, we wouldn't be able to fly in it."

"We crashed here, remember?" argued Donald.

"No, we didn't! We landed. Right, Goofy?"

But Goofy was already seated in one of the three orange chairs in front of a large screen. He turned to the other two and gestured for them to sit down.

"We should call Leon," he said, pressing a button on the large dashboard, "and tell him that we're comin' back."

Sora and Donald agreed, so they waited as the screen buzzed and blinked. Suddenly, the handsome face of a man appeared on screen. His eyes were green (slightly darker than Axel's, Mischa noted) and his long brown hair was spiked downwards.

"Hey guys," he said, his voice quiet and brooding. "What's going on?"

Sora turned in his seat and pointed behind him at Mischa. Leon looked alarmed.

"Good grief, what have you done to her?" he said, eying the straps that bound her to the table.

"We think she broke her back," supplied Donald.

"If that's possible," added Sora.

"Of course it's possible," said Goofy matter-of-factly. "So we were wondering if Merlin would be able to heal her?"

Leon nodded slowly. "I think so."

"Great!" exclaimed Sora. He turned back towards the screen to face Leon. "Oh, and Leon," he added, lowering his voice; Leon's eyebrows knit together as he strained to listen; "she had a Keyblade, too."

His eyes widened in shock. "Really?" He narrowed his eyes, his eyes flickering back towards Mischa. "We'll talk about this when you get here," he said, and then the screen went blank.

Sora cleared his throat. "Donald, why don't you watch over Mischa while we drive?"

Donald hopped off of his seat and waddled over to Mischa's table.

"But I'm fine," she complained, putting her arm under her body and bending her elbow ninety degrees so she could lift herself up. Her back screamed in protest, however, and she collapsed back onto the table. Donald walked over, shaking a feathered finger in her face.

"Now, now," he said condescendingly. "Be patient."

"We'll be there soon," said Goofy encouragingly from his seat at the front of the ship. Mischa closed her eyes and groaned audibly. Axel's cold hands on her back had somehow soothed the pain a little; but she still couldn't feel her legs.

And why had Leon looked so shocked when Sora had mentioned her Keyblade? Sure, everyday people don't have giant keys appearing in her hands out of nowhere; but really, what was so significant about her circumstance?

She decided to close her eyes and try to get some rest so as not to wear out her brain; she had no doubt that she would be experiencing more surprises very soon.

* * *

Author's Note: Like I said, not very skilled. But I tried.


	8. Long Division

Author's Note: I believe that, at this point in the game, Demyx had been defeated by Sora; but I decided to overlook that minor detail. :D

* * *

"I think Axel's got a giiiiirrrllllfriend!" jeered Demyx from his seat in the white throne room. The other ('remaining' was a better word) members of the Organization were seated in their respected chairs, which were extremely tall and the same eerie white color as the walls, ceiling, and floor of the room.

Axel sighed and tried to ignore him. Why did Demyx always have to be so immature about things? So he (Axel) had been slightly less distant with the other members as of late. That didn't mean it had anything to do with Mischa.

Or did it?

The loss of his best friend Roxas had affected Axel roughly, despite the Nobody's mandatory characteristic of having no emotions. Since his departure, Roxas had left a gaping hole in Axel's world; in his imaginary heart. Is it possible that Mischa may be taking Roxas' place in this figment of Axel's imagination? Or was it something more than just Roxas' friendship that he wanted?

Axel shook his head, dismissing these thoughts. It didn't matter, anyway. Nobodies can't be somebodies; it was simply just the way things were.

Saïx, who had caught Demyx's comment, looked up abruptly from the book he had been reading. "Axel? What's this about a girlfriend?"

Axel looked at him pointedly. "I didn't know you read."

"I just started," he replied vaguely. "Answer the question."

"It isn't true," he said automatically.

Xemnas gave a short laugh that sounded like "hmph" from his chair to the right of Saïx. "I presume this has something to do with the Mischa girl."

"She's no one," said Axel placidly. "She's just orders."

Xemnas nodded proudly. "I'm glad you see it our way."

Axel shrugged. "I still don't know the whole story, though. About why I've been assigned to her, I mean."

Xemnas studied him. "Yes," he said slowly. "You are right about that. She has sustained injuries, is that not so?"

"Her back," he answered, taking note of Xemnas' change in topic. "She was fighting the giant Heartless and-"

"I know," said Xemnas shortly. "I saw everything."

Axel paused, his mouth still open, the words still sitting on his tongue. "You saw..."

Xemnas folded his hands in his lap and turned his expression to blank. "Now, I seem to recall having new orders for you."

Axel bit his lip to keep himself from making a negative retort. Orders? Since when did he need to follow someone else's orders?

"The girl is in Hollow Bastion with those fools, correct?" Xemnas continued, watching Axel closely.

Axel nodded once. "I'm sure they've arrived there by now."

"Hmm," he murmured, gazing thoughtfully at something an inch above Axel's spiky red hair. "I wonder if they've yet run into the swarm of Heartless that was blocking the pathway earlier."

Axel fidgeted in his seat, but was careful not to show it.

"Uh oh," said Demyx in a mock serious tone. "Your girlfriend might get eaten by Heartless, Axe."

Axel stood up so quickly that the other members stared at him in shock. "First, Heartless don't _eat_ humans," he said condescendingly. "Second, Misch isn't my girlfriend, she's my orders. And third, Sora is perfectly capable of protecting her."

Even as he said it, a twinge of anxiety squirmed in his abdomen. He knew he shouldn't have left her alone with Sora, Donald, and Goofy, especially given her current condition. But he couldn't let the others know that. And neither could he have stayed with her for too long without blowing his cover to the Organization.

"'Misch'?" replied Demyx, his shock at Axel's reaction melting into a teasing countenance. "Ooo, we have a nickname for her now?"

Axel opened his mouth to retort, but Xemnas raised his hand. "That doesn't matter now," he said, his quiet voice calm. "What matters is getting her here."

"Here?" said Axel, perplexed. "What do you mean, 'here'?"

"Here, in the Castle," the Superior answered, as if this should have been obvious. "We're going to need her heart to unleash the power of Kingdom Hearts. Didn't you know that already, Axel?"

"I..." he gaped. Of course he had known that she was needed; that her heart would be sacrificed so that they could have hearts of their own. It was simply a matter of his forgetting this crucial information once he began spending time with her. "I...yes, I did."

If Xemnas could tell that Axel had forgotten, he did not mention it. "Your job was to befriend her and gain her trust. You seem to have accomplished this, so now it is your responsibility to bring her here for the, ah, heart-vest." He chuckled at his little joke, and the others followed him. Only Axel did not laugh, but smiled wanly to hide his worry. "Once she is here, deliver her to Saïx; he will handle things from there." He leaned forward a little, as if to emphasize the meaning in his words. "Those are your orders. Do you accept?"

"Sucks about the girlfriend," said Demyx knowingly as they walked out of the throne room a few moments later. "Well, look at it this way: at least she'll have met the FAMILY!" He patted Axel roughly on the back and roared with laughter at his own corny joke.

Axel paused and let Demyx walk ahead, his head spinning. He knew the consequences for refusing to abide by Xemnas' orders (he himself had delivered the punishment more times than one), but there was just a feeling that he could not shake. He had accepted the orders, albeit grudgingly (though he tried his best to hide it), and for some reason could not push Demyx's girlfriend jokes out of his mind.

Was he -dare he say it?- in love with Mischa Tatsuyo?

He shook his head internally. No, that was not possible. Nobodies cannot love; they cannot feel any kind of emotion.

But, then, if that were true, how was he feeling guilty about leading an innocent girl to her destruction right now?

He found himself hoping, as he trudged back to his room to brood, that Xemnas could not read his mind.

---

"Are we there yet?" groaned Mischa, lifting her hand to wave to the others and then letting it flop on the table lamely.

Goofy turned in his seat to face her and grinned. "Not yet, Mischa; we have to keep driving along this pathway in order to get there."

She sighed. This trip was taking forever; and without the coldness of Axel's touch on her back, the pain had returned with a vengeance.

"It's not much longer," came Donald's obnoxiously scratchy voice from his seat of the far left. "We just have to- oh, no!"

Mischa bolted upright in alarm (Donald had removed the straps when she ardently refused to fall asleep); her eyes filled with tears at the painful protest her back was giving her. It screamed white-hot whips brandishing across her spine over and over again in the span of half a second.

"What?" she gasped, collapsing back onto the table and writhing in pain; every muscle in her body was throbbing and her blood was pulsing through her veins faster than necessary.

"Heartless," muttered Sora darkly. He grabbed a lever under his chair, which propelled him further to the steering wheel. "Let's take care of 'em."

Mischa propped herself up by her elbows and watched as Sora expertly handled the machine gun, shooting the creatures on target and eliminating them on contact. The ride was surprisingly smooth, despite all the turning and flipping Sora was controlling.

Then Donald let out an exclamation and scurried over to her table. He grabbed the straps and buckled them across, tying her down once more. "We can't risk you falling off of the table," he clarified.

Suddenly, the ship gave a great lurch, and Donald was thrown across the cabin. Mischa's table rocked back and forth dangerous, but she payed no mind for she was watching Sora's hands maneuver the control panel. With one swift, deft movement, he smacked down a lever and a bright light appeared from somewhere beneath the ship; its glare singed the Heartless instantly. Up ahead, a shiny keyhole-shaped gateway appeared.

"Oh boy!" shouted Donald excitedly, obviously recovered from his fall.

The light brightened and brightened as they drove into the gateway; Mischa scrunched her eyes shut to the blinding light and listened as a loud whooshing sound told her they had made it through.

When she opened her eyes, Donald and Goofy were unclipping the straps and Sora was nowhere to be seen.

"Where's...Sora?" she asked groggily, although she had only been asleep for a minute tops.

"He's gettin' Leon," replied Goofy, "to help carry you to Merlin's." He nodded to Donald and she felt hands touch her sore back; then she was being lifted into the air (albeit weakly) and carried out of the ship.

"Mischa," said Goofy grandly, "welcome to Hollow Bastion."

Hollow Bastion was nothing like Yoroido, she discovered. The sky was orange and pink; not blue like Yoroido's. The streets of the town square they stood in were composed of cobblestone; the tiny shops were made of grayish brick with tiled roofs, and a cheerful-looking person stood behind the low wooden counter of each one. There were crates of produce outside each shop, and there was a large lower level that they were standing in that had a broken-down wagon. She looked back up at the sky; in the distance was what appeared to be a decrepit castle under many repairs.

Over the bend that was a stairway appeared Sora and the man that he had been talking to on the ship's screen. Mischa blushed; he was much more handsome in person. He was tall, his buff muscles rippling under his white shirt as he walked. He wore a black leather jacket and pants, which both had quite a lot of chains and red belts. As he approached, Mischa noticed that his left eye had a diagonal scar across above and below the socket, as if he had been closing that eye when whatever it was had made contact.

"Is that her?" he asked skeptically, looking down at Mischa with slight disdain. Mischa sniffed inconspicuously; did she smell funky, or was he always like that?

"Yeah," said Sora happily. "Let's take her to Merlin."

Leon bent down a little and lifted her from Goofy's and Donald's arms. "I'll take care of it," he said hastily as they opened their mouths to protest.

"I can walk," she said indignantly. The corners of his mouth twitched.

"That's why you're paralyzed, right?" he said in mock seriousness.

"Fine," she conceded grudgingly. Leon's strength made her feel as weightless as a feather as he carried her down the large stairs and into what looked like a tiny neighborhood of houses that looked just like the shops, with the exception of the fronts. She turned her head to make sure Sora, Donald and Goofy were following; Sora smiled and gave her a thumbs-up. Leon turned sideways as he carried her through a wooden door that Goofy had ran ahead to open.

She was overcome by sudden warmth as they entered the small one-room house. The floor was brick , the walls were a bland gray color, and the one window was boarded up with wood. Directly ahead was a computer system comprised of a large screen with many small buttons surrounding it; the green font on the display was buzzing and blinking. To the left was a chalkboard with nothing written on it, and next to it was a wooden bureau, supporting a white book with a strange green aura around it that Mischa was sure she had to be imagining. The headboard of a bed leaned against the table, and at the foot of this bed was a wardrobe with double doors. In the center of the back wall was a brick stove with a blazing fire underneath it, causing the potions within the flasks to bubble and hiss dangerously. Next to the stove was a workbench with an unfinished toy train and rocket sitting idly on the platform, and to the left was a bookshelf heavily laden with books. In the center of the room was a raised stone platform with a small staircase spiraling around it. On the platform was a clothed table flanked on either side by two armchairs: a tiny blue one, and a large orange one. The table was clear except for a gray teapot, a matching sugar bowl, and two tiny teacups. Miscellaneous books were carelessly strewn about the already small space around the room.

Mischa took all this in rather quickly, her eyes darting about the room with avid curiosity. This home was nothing like the roomy cottages in Yoroido; most of them being or having once been a teahouse, anyway.

She then realized that they were not alone.

A petite girl with short black hair bounded over to them, a headband wrapped just above her dark, excited eyes. Her outfit was rather revealing, Mischa noted with amusement, and consisted of many bands and ribbons.

"Hey, guys!" she greeted, waving unnecessarily. "You're back soon! What hap-" Her eyes caught sight of Mischa lying helplessly across Leon's arms and her cheerful smile faded. "Who's...is she...all right?"

"Oh, dear," came a soft, gentle voice. Her brown hair was pulled up into a long braid, which stood out against her red and white blouse, pink skirt, and brown combat boots. Her bright green eyes were kind but belied an unbreakable will, and Mischa could tell by just looking at her that she was the complete opposite of the overly cheery girl next to her. "What happened?"

"She hurt her back," supplied Sora. Mischa was somewhat surprised to find that Sora came up to only about Leon's shoulder.

The gentle girl pursed her heart-shaped lips. "That's too bad...Yuffie, go get Merlin, he can fix this."

The ninja girl nodded, yanked open the wooden door, and hurried outside.

"Help me, Aerith," said Leon passively, carrying Mischa over to the bed. He didn't really need her help, though, as he gingerly placed her on the mattress and then backed away a little too quickly. Aerith sat at the foot of the bed and scrutinized Mischa.

"What is your name, dear?" she asked softly.

"Mischa," she croaked, every inch of her body tingling with numbness at being held for so long. "Mischa Tatsuyo."

Aerith nodded. Mischa let her eyes roam around the room, which was dank and dreary. "It's so...dark in here," she commented before she could stop herself.

Aerith laughed; it sounded like little tinkling bells, and just the sound of it made Mischa feel a little better. "Yes, it's how we stay undercover."

Mischa stared at her, confused. "Undercover?" She coughed, and a spurt of blood appeared on her hand.

"Oh, no," said Aerith, looking alarmed. "Shh, don't speak until you're healed."

At that moment, the door opened from somewhere behind the bed and the sound of two pairs of shoes echoed on the stone walls.

"She's over here, Merlin," said Yuffie, her voice coming closer as she walked over to the bed.

"Very well," replied a voice that Mischa presumed to be Merlin's; it was the only one she did not yet recognize. "Let me see her."

As he came around, Mischa slowly lifted her eyes to meet his. He was old, yet had an air of wisdom about him. His eyes were gentle under his snowy white eyebrows, which were knit together in perplexity, and his mouth twitched under his white mustache and extremely long beard. He wore a tall, pointed light blue wizard's cap and long robes of the same color.

He folded his arms and examined her for a long moment or two. "It isn't broken," he said finally. "I can tell that much from her position."

"What do you mean?" asked Donald from behind Mischa's head.

"She would be writhing in pain if her spine was broken," he explained, "so I am sure that it is just greatly bruised." He turned and floated over to the brick stove and lifted one of the potion flasks. "Lucky for you, miss, I was just brewing this this morning," he said, as if it made much of a difference. "The Healing Draught. I had a feeling that one of you was going to get badly hurt today." He chuckled as he carried the flask over and handed it to Mischa. She looked at it, then at him expectantly.

"Well, go on now, drink it," he instructed.

She looked back at the light blue liquid. It smelled appetizing...

As soon as the liquid touched her esophagus, a burning sensation seared in her throat and she gagged helplessly.

"Oh, dear," said Merlin, looking alarmed; he quickly grabbed the flask back. "My mistake, terribly sorry...that must have been the fever antidote...Yuffie, hand me that green potion, there."

Mischa felt her eyes bugging out of her sockets and hot tears forming around them; she didn't care that everyone was watching her in concern. Merlin handed her the flask of light green potion once she had calmed down, and she looked at it suspiciously before taking one cautious sip. The liquid instantly soothed her muscles and nerves; she greedily drank the rest down and was disappointed to find that it was empty.

"Just a moment, now," said Merlin, visibly relieved by her reaction.

The pain in her back began to subside, and the numbness in her legs tingled away to grant feeling. The dried blood on her dress and hand cleared away, and she felt completely back to normal.

"That is amazing," she cried, awestruck, and happy to find that she could speak normally.

"Oh, good!" exclaimed Aerith, clapping her hands together. Mischa swung her now-moving legs over the side of the bed so that she could sit on the edge next to Aerith.

"So, my dear," began Merlin tentatively, "could you perhaps tell me, er, exactly how this injury was sustained?"

Mischa smiled and launched into the story of fighting the giant fish (Sora added parts here and there) and getting slammed into the stone well. Her heart fluttered as she thought of Axel running over to her, to see if she was all right...

Merlin winced as she described the impact. "Well, that certainly does not sound pleasant."

"So what are you guys up to?" Yuffie wanted to know. "Did you ever visit that world Yoroido?"

Sora nodded and gestured to Mischa. "Yeah, it's how we met Mischa."

"I hear you can wield the Keyblade," said Leon quietly, his eyes on Mischa. The others looked at her in surprise, their eyes wide.

"Well, I guess," she admitted. She held out her hand and the familiar large key appeared in her hand. Leon, Yuffie, Aerith and Merlin gasped.

"How-?" sputtered Yuffie.

"That is very interesting," said Merlin mysteriously. "Very, very interesting."

"I don't understand any of this," protested Mischa. "Why do I have this key, and what does it do?"

"We can't answer the first one," said Leon, examining the Keyblade in her hands now, "because we really don't know."

"The Keyblade is the only object capable of opening the Door to the Light," explained Aerith, still looking surprised. "Only a few, select people are chosen to wield it."

"And how are they chosen?" asked Mischa, wondering what in the world could be so special about her.

Aerith shook her head sadly. "We don't know."

Sora, who had been staring at the wall, deliberating, suddenly had a flash of inspiration. "We need to go back to Yoroido!"

"You're probably right," said Mischa, standing up. She turned to Merlin. "I can't thank you enough for healing me."

Merlin waved his hand, abashed at her sincerity. "Oh, it was no trouble at all, miss." He then looked at her seriously. "Just watch out for the Organization," he warned. "We don't know what they're up to."

"Organization?" repeated Mischa in confusion. "What Organization?"

"Organization XIII," answered Leon, as if this should have been obvious. "Nobodies in black cloaks. You can't miss 'em."

Mischa's heart lurched in her chest. _Nobodies in black cloaks_. Was Axel…?

"Let's go," Sora called from the doorway. "I have a bad feeling about Yoroido."

Mischa was suddenly alert. "Thank you," she said to the four again, and then hurried out after Sora, Donald, and Goofy.

* * *

Author's Note: So yeah, I decided to include the lovely peoples from Hollow Bastion/Radiant Garden. :)


	9. Goodbye, Apathy

Author's Note: This one's a little shorter…sorry.

* * *

Mischa felt somewhat nauseous as the ship sailed through space, in search of Yoroido. She stood behind Sora's chair, staring curiously out the huge front window, watching the millions of stars zoom by quickly.

Goofy noticed her reaction to space travel. "You get used to it," he explained.

"Hmm," she conceded, looking away from the screen and directing her focus to something stationary. Never in a million – no, a billion – years would she have ever imagined being here, in space, watching worlds pass by in search of her own. She laughed to herself, thinking about all the years she spent in one place, thinking it was the only one that existed, when in fact there were so many more only miles away. It all just seemed too surreal to Mischa.

"You know, now that I think about it," said Sora conversationally; Mischa blinked out of her reverie; "you're really not supposed to know about the other worlds, Mischa."

She raised her eyebrows. Axel had told her the same thing. "And why not?" she wanted to know.

Sora shrugged. "I guess to keep the balance between each world or something. All I know is that I'm supposed to use the Keyblade to seal the gateways between each world."

"Why?" Mischa was becoming genuinely curious.

"I think the Heartless are using them to enter each world."

She considered this. The Keyblade – the weapon she now possessed, as well – would block the Heartless from entering the worlds. Why, then, did Heartless enter hers? Why hadn't Sora reached her world in time to stop them?

And then it hit her._ She_ was the one who needed to seal the gateway to her world. _She_ needed to stop the Heartless from attacking her village.

She needed to close the door.

---

"Oh man," grumbled Axel, the wind wildly whipping his red hair against his face. "Where are they?"

The wooden boards of the docks creaked dangerously under his feet against the pounding wind. The sky above was completely dark, the clouds rumbling by as if they were moving on their own free will. A stroke of lightning lit up the horizon shortly, outlining the height of the waves. The tide was higher that usual: the waves reached up like hands trying to grab the dock on which he stood.

He scrutinized the sky, watching for any signs of an orange ship approaching. Suddenly, his wish came true: the Gummi Ship soared into the atmosphere, headed towards the beach. Axel followed its path with his eyes, wondering if the wind would blow it away, but it appeared to be heavy enough to land. Sand blew everywhere - more so than it already was, that is - in a circular formation around the ship as its supports folded out of their compartments and anchored into the ground.

Axel walked forward as the door opened vertically, steam billowing out around the edges from the interior air pressure. A torn black boot appeared, and then another; then the full image of Mischa stood in the doorway, the wind whipping her long brown hair around her face.

He felt a strange sensation in his abdomen; guilt, at what he was going to put her through? Relief at seeing that she had survived?

Dare he think what else?

But as he watched her come running towards him, fighting the wind as her happy face lit up some of the darkness, he couldn't help but feel happy.

She almost knocked the wind out of his lungs as she collapsed into him, her arms tight around his waist. He could tell that it was not her intent to let go, so he compromised by placing his hands on her back and resting the side of his face on her head.

"I suppose this means you're still breathing," he said conversationally. He was not accustomed to such contact, nor to the feelings behind it.

He lifted his head so she could look up at him. "Quite," she agreed. "I'm completely healed."

"I can tell." He lifted his worried eyes to look up at the sky.

"This isn't an ordinary Yoroido hurricane," Mischa clarified, "in case you were wondering."

"I didn't think so," he conceded. He lifted his hands off of her back- somewhat reluctantly, he noticed, as if his hands had half a will of their own - to signal the end of the embrace. She released her grip on him unwillingly and stepped a foot or two back, somewhat abashed.

Suddenly, the wind began to pick up. "What's going on?" she had to shout, even though they were only two feet apart.

He looked sad. "Heartless," he shouted back. "They're destroying the place. You shouldn't have come here; you can't stop them."

Tear filled her eyes as she looked around at her beach; her world. She looked back at him, a pleading look in her glossy eyes. "Where should I go?"

He leaned forward and placed a hand on her shoulder, as if to emphasize his words. "I want you to go with Sora, Donald, and Goofy," he instructed. "Just stay with them, and I'll come find you soon."

"Won't you come with us?" she asked desperately; Axel almost felt remorse at leaving her.

But he shook his head. "I can't, I have other things to do."

She impulsively ran forward and buried her face in his chest. He held her again, but this time, a greater force overcame him and he felt his head lean down and kiss her hair.

"I'll come find you," he repeated, a little shaken at his action.

He felt her sniff. "I-"

But he'll never know what she would have said, for at that moment, the world erupted in darkness.

---

"Is she awake?"

"I don't think so."

"It's a miracle we got her out of there in time!"

"Yeah, the Heartless would've eaten her up!"

Consciousness slowly flooded back into Mischa's body as she came to. Her eyes fluttered open and she looked around, only to find (much to her dismay) that she was back on the table aboard the Gummi Ship.

That was a pretty crazy dream, she thought as she quickly sat up - a mistake, she realized too late, as blood rushed into her head and pounded in her ears, making her extremely dizzy.

"She's awake!" exclaimed Donald's voice from her immediate left. She saw Goofy turn around in his chair and wave.

"Well, hiya, Mischa!" he said cheerfully. "Glad you're okay."

"What happened?" she muttered, rubbing a sore spot on the back of her head.

"Oh, yeah, sorry about that," admitted Sora from her right. "We were sort of in a hurry, and you were out of it, so we kind of-"

"Threw you onto the table," finished Donald sheepishly.

She chuckled. "S'okay." She hopped off the table and walked over to the screen, standing behind Sora's chair. The other two followed her. "So what's going-?" Her voice faltered as she caught sight of the world Goofy had been watching.

It was Yoroido, completely enveloped in shadows. She saw a lightning bolt strike the clouds, and suddenly, it disappeared.

"No," she choked, grabbing the chair for support. It hadn't been a dream, she realized, panic striking her body as easily as the lightning had stricken Yoroido. Her world - her whole life - had just disappeared in front of her eyes.

Goofy and Donald looked at her sadly. "I'm sorry, Mischa," said Goofy gravely.

She suddenly felt exhausted, even though she had only just woken; she leaned her forehead against the plush fabric of Sora's chair and sighed as if she had been holding her breath for a long time.

"It doesn't matter," she mumbled. "S'not like I had anything there to live for, anyway."

Then a sudden thought struck her. She lifted her so quickly that she forgot to wince when her neck cracked. The others looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to speak.

"Axel…" she murmured shakily, the panic revving up again. "Did he-?"

Sora laughed at her uncertainty. "I guess you forgot that he uses darkness to travel."

She paused for a moment to let that sink in. Axel was safe; she would see him soon. That was all that mattered.

"So, um," she started, not sure where to begin. There were so many questions that she wanted to ask them; so much that she wanted to know. "What's the deal with this Organization XIII?"

They looked at her in surprise. "Actually," said Sora, "we were hoping that you'd know."

"Me?" she squeaked, dumbstruck. "Why would I know anything?"

"Well," Sora said slowly, as if trying to get a point across to a toddler. "You've spent so much time with Axel…"

"Axel's part of this Organization?" she said abruptly. Merlin had told her to watch out for the Organization. Did that mean Axel was a part of whatever sinister ideas they were planning?

"Didn't ya hear Leon?" asked Goofy, voicing her thoughts. "'Nobodies in black cloaks'? Axel _has_ to be one of them; what else would he be?"

She nodded. "I guess you're right." Her head was swimming with curiosity. "So you don't know anything about them?"

Goofy glanced at the screen. "Well," he began slowly, thinking hard, "we know that there are thirteen members, and they're all Nobodies."

"We've knocked out about half of them," said Sora proudly.

"Vexen, Lexaeus, Zexion, Marluxia, and Larxene are all gone, 'cuz of us," said Donald, just as proudly.

"Well, sort of," said Sora, uneasiness creeping into his voice. "You see, Marluxia and Larxene were planning on overthrowing the Organization, and Axel pretended to be working with them but then ended up betraying them."

"Axel betrayed a lot of people," added Donald thoughtfully.

Mischa's stomach lurched. Axel had seemed so sincere...but, she thought worriedly, whom else was he betraying?

"All we really know is," said Sora, waking Mischa from her reverie, "that the Organization is planning something, and it probably isn't good."

"We're tryin' to find the King," explained Goofy, "so he can tell us what's really goin' on."

"King?" inquired Mischa. Donald hissed at Goofy furiously.

"Goofy! No one's supposed to know about that!"

Mischa giggled. "It's okay, I won't tell anyone, I promise."

Sora looked at her gravely. "Well, that's the problem." He glanced at the other two uneasily. "You have to be really careful, especially hanging with Axel."

"You can never tell which side he's on," added Donald.

"Normally, though, he works in his own personal favor," finished Goofy.

Mischa bit her lip. Did Axel's favor include her? "Well, just tell me about this king, and anything else you guys know. I'm starting to see that knowledge is power in this game."

---

The deserted town was completely quiet as Axel emerged from a dark alleyway, glancing around inconspicuously, obviously in search of someone or something. The bright lights from the neon lights above him dimmed dangerously, and the circular square was completely empty. He stepped onto the bottommost step of the stairs leading up to another deserted building and waited. The street lamps flickered on suddenly, causing him to jump in surprise. From the entrance of an alleyway across the street from where he stood came a low laugh.

Axel stepped forward to get a closer look at the newcomer. As he pushed back his hood, he saw the back of a head of spiked blond hair.

Roxas.

"You came," said Roxas, facing the alleyway with his back to Axel.

"'Course I did," muttered Axel, folding his arms across his chest. "I haven't seen much of you since you walked out on us, Roxas."

He shuddered, as if a cold chill had suddenly caught him by surprise. "I left for my own reasons," he said quietly. "On my own terms."

"You can't turn your back on the Organization," Axel replied clearly, his temper flaring. "_You can't turn your back on the Organization!"_

His shout echoed down the alleyway; Roxas said nothing for a moment. He suddenly spun around, his eyes narrowed and blazing.

"So what do you think _you're_ doing, huh? 'Following your orders' for the 'good of the Organization'?" he asked sarcastically, making exaggerated air quotes. Axel stiffened, but kept his features carefully composed; a smug expression formed on Roxas' face.

"It's her, isn't it?" he asked softly, still smiling. "The girl. Your 'orders'."

"She's nothing," he replied curtly. "I'm just doing as I'm told."

Roxas nodded, unconvinced. "You haven't brought her to the Castle yet, though, like you're supposed to do."

Axel sighed. "I just…I want her to live a little, before she…"

"Ends up like us?" finished Roxas. He laughed. "Gosh, Axel, I don't remember you ever being this soft."

He smiled wanly. "I'm not soft, it's just that…she's so innocent, and…"

Roxas nodded. "I understand." He scuffed his shoe forward. "I just don't want her taking my place, that's all."

"Your place, where?" Axel inquired. But Roxas just smiled and backed away into the shadows.

* * *

Author's Note: So the Axel/Roxas scene came to me in a dream. It was pretty cool. :D


	10. Always Be

Author's Note: Again, a little shorter.

* * *

"What are they up to…?" DiZ mumbled to himself, ferociously pressing buttons on the keyboard at his computer systems. The fluorescent blue screens blinked in response, but apparently did not contain the information he needed.

"What was that?" said Ansem, strolling up behind him. "Has something happened?"

DiZ sighed impatiently. "No, and that's exactly the problem!" Without warning, he brought his fist down onto the keyboard with a BANG! "I haven't detected anything in days…what could they be doing?"

Ansem lowered his head, lost in thought. "Is the redhead still with the girl?"

"Hmm," murmured DiZ thoughtfully, the click clacking of his fingers on the keyboard echoing in the silence as he typed. "It appears that she has joined Sora and his friends." He paused, deliberating. "Perhaps there has been some kind of change in plans?"

"Why would Xemnas change his plans?" asked Ansem uncertainly.

"Because Axel is untrustworthy," replied DiZ with dawning comprehension. "I believe that Xemnas wants to use the girl's heart to unleash Kingdom Hearts, once Sora manages to release enough hearts from defeating Heartless." He sped up, excited at his realization. "He sent Axel to befriend her so he could lure her to the World That Never Was."

"And that is Axel's only job, to befriend her."

"Yes," agreed DiZ. "It all makes sense now. But, if my hypothesis is true, then we'd better work fast, before the Organization gets hold of the poor girl."

---

There were so many new thoughts swirling around in Mischa's brain that she found it extremely difficult to follow the discussion that she, Sora, Donald, and Goofy were supposed to be having. They were trying to decide where to go next; she was trying to decide where to stash all of the information she had just acquired.

According to Sora, Donald, and Goofy, there was a door. A special door which, she inferred, kept the balance between light and dark in the world intact. About a year ago, a man named Ansem, corrupted by knowledge, sought to open this door and open it, mistakenly believing that it contained darkness. Sora and his friends stopped him and re-closed the door, locking most of the Heartless in as well as King Mickey, who had left his home at Disney Castle in pursuit of the door, and Riku, Sora's best friend from the Destiny Islands whom had sadly been taken over by the powers of darkness.

After all this had happened, they had "found themselves", as Goofy had affectionately put it, in Castle Oblivion, which caused them to lose their memories. A man in a black cloak – whom they would later find out to be Marluxia – created a deck of cards from their memories. Each floor of the castle had been a different world created by Sora's memories, and the man explained that the higher they went, the more memories they lost.

There was actually somewhat of a civil war going on within the mysterious Organization XIII at the time; Marluxia, lord of Castle Oblivion, and Larxene were conspiring to use Sora to overthrow the Organization by manipulating his memories with the powers of Naminé. Two other members, Zexion and Lexaeus, had caught wind of their plans and decided to use Riku as a pawn to bring down Marluxia and Larxene. Vexen created a replica of Riku, and Naminé secretly informed Sora of Marluxia's plan when he destroyed Larxene and Vexen was killed. Axel, acting as a double agent, had allowed Sora to meet Naminé thus foiling Marluxia's plans. They fought and defeated Marluxia; then Naminé put them to sleep inside pod-like structures. When he woke up, Sora had been greeted by Goofy and Donald, and also found that his clothes were much smaller than they had been when he was put to sleep. They found themselves in Twilight Town, a world they hadn't recognized, and met a group of friends named Hayner, Pence, and Olette. Sora described them as being nice, but vaguely familiar.

In any case, they boarded a train at the instruction of King Mickey and met with Yen Sid, the king's personal teacher, who told them what they needed to know. They learned that even though the Heartless still roamed, there were also new creatures of darkness: Nobodies, which were born from the body left behind once a heart has been corrupted by darkness.

"Twilight Town," said Sora suddenly, jerking Mischa's focus back to the task at hand. "We should go back to Twilight Town and see what's up."

The foursome arrived in what appeared to be a room in the back of an alleyway. There was a couch and a dartboard, so Mischa assumed it to be some sort of club. Suddenly, a gate at the entrance creaked open and in walked three teens, deep in conversation.

"I don't know," the leader was saying as they walked in, clearly not noticing them standing in the corner. He had curly blond hair that was combed back and had an air of toughness about him. The other two he was talking to were a slightly round boy, who had dark brown hair sticking up above a horizontally arranged headband and a matching red sports jersey, and a girl, who had bright green eyes and chestnut brown hair braided into two pigtails.

"It seems a little weird," the leader continued, turning around. "I mean, it's like, she appears outta nowhere, and then- hey, Sora!"

The other two turned and smiled at the sight of Sora. He strode forward and punched fists affectionately with the leader.

"Hey guys," greeted Sora. "We just thought we'd come back and visit." He turned towards his companions. "You guys know Donald and Goofy...and this is Mischa."

Mischa waved timidly. The girl smiled.

"I'm Olette," she offered kindly; Mischa liked her immediately.

"Pence," said the boy with the jersey.

"And I'm Hayner," the leader said almost proudly, pointing to chest with his thumb.

She nodded once. "Nice to meet you all."

"So, what's going on in Twilight Town?" Sora asked nonchalantly.

The threesome exchanged glances. "Well," said Pence, uneasiness creeping into his voice, "a girl sort of just...appeared here."

"Her name was Kairi," said Olette.

"And she said she was looking for you, Sora," added Hayner.

Mischa, Donald, and Goofy looked over at Sora, who looked like he was torn between shock and excitement. The excitement quickly won over. "Really?" he asked eagerly. "Where is she?"

They exchanged another uneasy glance. "Well, we were all in here, hanging with her," began Olette, "when this guy in a black cloak came and took her away."

"In a black warp hole," added Pence.

At once Sora was alert. "Who was it? Did he have his hood down?"

Hayner nodded. "Yeah, he had really spiky red hair."

Sora glanced at Mischa out of the corner of his eye, clearly not wanting to express their shared concern with the others. Goofy gulped, and Donald stomped on his foot furiously.

"Hmm," said Mischa thoughtfully. She looked at Sora. "Who's Kairi, though?"

Sora sighed, as if the thought of Kairi depressed him. "She's one of my best friends from the island," he replied sadly. "This entire time, I've been searching for her, and Riku..."

Pence looked puzzled. "Sorry, no Riku."

Sora sighed again, appearing deflated. Goofy patted him on the back soothingly. "Don't worry, Sora, we'll find 'em soon enough."

Suddenly, there was a scream from somewhere outside the hangout. Hayner, Pence and Olette ran out through the metal gate, and Sora, Mischa, Donald and Goofy followed them.

"It came from the sandlot," said Olette abruptly, jogging down the small hill to the south. The others hurried after her, past a couple shops and down a steep hill. They found themselves in a large arena, and saw nothing unusual at first. Sora turned to Mischa, his eyes slightly narrowed.

"What did Axel tell you?" he demanded. "About Kairi, what did he say?"

Mischa shook her head. "Nothing to me," she replied honestly. She thought for a moment. "Well, I asked him to come with us when Yoroido was breaking up, and he said that he had other work to do."

His upper lip curled into a sneer. "Yeah, kidnapping Kairi was his 'job'. I thought he was on our side."

"Don't blame him," she pleaded, surprising herself with her sincerity. "I don't think he means any harm to her."

Sora's and Mischa's Keyblades suddenly appeared in their clenched fists. They both whipped around, in search of danger, only to find that time had somehow stopped. Donald and Goofy looked around, as well, but Hayner, Pence, and Olette stood stock-still, their mouths hanging open from starting to speak.

Sora and Mischa turned around to face forward and saw them: two thin, silver creatures with zipper-shaped mouths that appeared to be dancing on the spot.

"Nobodies!" exclaimed Donald from behind her. Mischa stared at them in shock.

"Let's get 'em," muttered Sora darkly. He lunged forward and swung at the Nobodies wildly; they zoomed out of the way and appeared behind him, kicking him in the back.

Mischa gripped her Keyblade, ran forward towards the Nobody that had hit Sora, swinging the Keyblade to the left and hearing the creature hiss and then disappear.

"Nice one!" said Sora encouragingly, whacking at a few more creatures that had appeared. Mischa helped him, Donald, and Goofy knock out a few dozen of the creatures, and then they suddenly vanished.

They looked around alertly, waiting for more Nobodies to appear, but instead cringed upon hearing an irritated roar.

"NO!"

Sora, Donald, and Goofy stood frozen, still in their battle stances. Mischa whipped around to see a man in a black cloak standing a few yards away. Although he was standing right there, Mischa could tell that the shout had not come from him.

"They've continued to infiltrate my town!" exclaimed the deep voice again, seemingly from somewhere in the sky; whoever he was, he was not happy. "Hurry! Get her out of there!"

The cloaked man advanced forward so quickly that Mischa did not have time to react. She felt a tug as his hand gripped her wrist, and then all was black.

---

"This should do nicely," a voice said, sounding pleased.

Mischa opened her eyes groggily. She realized with a pang of annoyance that this was the third time in one day - or, at least, what seemed like one day - she had woken up from one thing or another. She blinked blearily, trying to comprehend what she was seeing.

She was in a dark room that appeared to be a basement of somewhere. The only light was blue, coming from something to the right of her. She turned her head to find that it was a computer system, its fluorescent blue screens buzzing and blinking. The only sounds she could hear right away were the echoes of someone typing on the computer's keyboard, and more than one person breathing.

It took her a moment to realize that she was upright; her wrists were shackled to the wall, though her feet remained stationary on the ground. She shivered. The chains were freezing on her delicate skin, and her arms were beginning to sore.

"Hello?" she croaked. She gasped as the chair - which she had only just noticed - spun around and a man sat it in, wearing red and black robes and his face completely obscured by red bandages.

"Oh yes," he said distractedly. "I apologize for the uncomfortable imprisonment; you see, I simply could not risk your escaping; or, for that matter, someone else setting you free."

Mischa blinked. "Imprisonment?"

He nodded, as if this should have been obvious. "Yes, I am keeping you here so, ah, _other_ people do not get hold of you."

She shook her head. "What are you talking about? Why am I here?"

He cocked his head, studying her. "Why ever did they choose you?" he asked, seeming to be speaking more to himself.

"If you're talking about the Keyblade, then I don't know," she said bluntly.

He seemed surprised. "Keyblade?" He stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Well, that certainly changes things." He turned back to his computer and began typing again.

"Wait," said Mischa; he did not stop his typing. "Why am I here?"

"I thought I already said that," he replied easily. "I don't want anyone else getting hold of you."

"Who?"

He paused for a moment, seemingly thinking, then resumed typing. "Organization XIII."

She felt a sinking sensation in her abdomen. "Why...are they after me?"

"They need you," he replied simply. "I don't want to tell you the details - they are far too gruesome - but I want you to remember anything that man Axel has said to you over the past several days."

Mischa bit her lip; where to start? He mysteriously appeared one day, changed the design on her dress, and came back every single day for the next week. "He was training me," she admitted. "He was trying to teach me how to fight."

The strange man nodded. "How to fight off the Heartless, yes." He stopped typing and turned around. "The Organization currently controls both the Heartless and Nobodies," he said seriously. "So, naturally, they pose a great threat to the universe."

"So, you're saying that Axel brought those Heartless creatures into my village?" she demanded, her temper flaring at once.

But the man shook his head. "No, I do not believe so. Each member of the Organization controls his or her own type of Nobody; Axel controls the Assassin Nobodies. You have only yet encountered the Dusk Nobodies, which are the most common form." He sighed. "You won't have to, though, if I can manage to keep you away from those pests."

Mischa considered for a moment as the man stared off in irritable silence. Who was this man, and what was he up to? And why wouldn't he tell her what the Organization was planning? She thought she had a right to know, seeing as the fate was apparently hers.

"Can I ask a question?" she asked timidly. He raised his head and apprehended her with tired eyes. "Who are you?"

He suddenly laughed, as if this simple question amused him like nothing else. "I'm afraid I can't tell you that, dear."

"Then what grudge are you holding against the Organization?" she pressed. "What will you gain from stopping them?"

He smiled and chuckled. "Revenge" was all he said. He turned slightly and looked at something on the other side of the lair.

"Ansem," he called, even though the lair was not very large. "Hook her up to the machine. I want to see what makes her heart so special."

* * *

Author's Note: I had to do some research (on Wikipedia…lol) for this chapter. :D


	11. Stars and Boulevards

Author's Note: I know Naminé is connected with Kairi-Sora-Roxas and everything, but I just thought she'd fit in well with Mischa, too.

* * *

Mischa held her breath as a man in a black cloak emerged from the shadows and slowly walked towards her. His hood was up and it completely covered his face, but Mischa knew it was not Axel, though he wore the same get-up. This one's name was Ansem; where had she heard that name before? She pondered this as he strapped some kind of harness around her chest, clipping it shut at the front. She felt his breath on her arms and suddenly remembered.

Ansem was the man that Sora, Donald, and Goofy had defeated a year ago; the man who sought to open the Door and unleash darkness on the universe. How was he here? Had he somehow turned into a Nobody when he was defeated? And why was the strange man working with him; didn't he realize what kind of person he was?

"You," she hissed. "You're supposed to be dead."

His head lifted abruptly; she guessed that he was looking at her in shock behind the shadows covering his face. "Dead?" His voice was deep and sounded surprisingly young.

She narrowed her eyes and nodded. "Don't you remember? Sora defeated you when you tried to open the Door to darkness."

His head remained stationary for a moment as he comprehended her words; then a sigh escaped from under the hood. "I'm afraid you've got it all wrong."

She shook her head furiously. "Sora wouldn't lie to me. He said that he defeated Ansem a year ago; and yet here you are."

He shook his head. "You don't understand." His hand brushed her dress as he tightened the harness; Mischa was shocked to find it warm.

"You're real," she gasped. "You're not a Nobody."

Ansem said nothing. He connected some kind of cord to the harness and then turned around, walking towards the man's computers. He bent over and dragged out a machine that Mischa hadn't noticed before. She felt a sinking sensation in her stomach that can only be categorized as fear.

The machine was tall - it came up almost to the top of Ansem's hood - thin, and had a few platforms; at first she thought it was some kind of metal tree. Ansem flicked a switch near the top; the machine lit up suddenly, and the platforms began to twitch.

"Here you are, DiZ," said Ansem tonelessly. "Ready to go."

DiZ clapped once. "Excellent." He turned in his chair to Mischa and smiled. "Well, my little lab rat, this should answer many of our questions."

Mischa gulped. "What...what is it going to do to me?"

DiZ laughed. "Oh, it won't hurt you, dear." He gestured to the harness around her chest. "This is my new toy. It will simply display a projection of your heart so that Ansem here and I can study it."

"Why do you need to study my heart?" Although his tone was worry-free, Mischa was still fearful. This was her _heart_ they were playing with, after all.

"I want to see why the Organization so desires your heart above others," he answered gravely. "It will help to know, believe me."

She sighed. "Okay, if it will help." She shifted her weight to her right side so that her left arm could rest from being stretched out.

"All right, Ansem," he said, turning back to the machine. "We have her consent; go ahead."

He nodded and pressed a button on the third tier from the top. Mischa felt a strange tingling sensation in her chest, and suddenly there it was, her heart floating on the top of the machine. It looked much different than she had imagined. It looked more like a heart-shaped diamond; the facets reflected rainbow colors from the light generated by the machine below it as it slowly rotated.

DiZ stood up and walked eagerly over to the machine. "Fascinating," he murmured. He examined each facet closely. "Interesting."

"What have you found?" Ansem wanted to know. Mischa suddenly felt extremely exhausted, but strained to hear their words.

"It seems that there is some kind of barrier around it," replied DiZ curiously. "Something stopping malicious things from entering it. I have never seen this before; it's no wonder the Organization is after it."

"Hmm," muttered Ansem lowly. "Is Xemnas-"

Suddenly, the light from the machine and the computers went out and the room was encompassed in pitch-blackness. Mischa assumed that the projection of her heart had been returned to her body, for she felt energetic and normal. She felt something cold brushed against her wrists, and, fear bubbling up in her chest, she opened her mouth to scream.

"Shh," whispered a female voice in her ear. "Just stay quiet; I'm going to get you out of here."

Mischa nodded numbly. She blinked, trying to adjust her eyes to the darkness.

"What on earth-?" sputtered DiZ from somewhere a few yards in front of her. "What happened to the power?"

"I'm trying to find the switch," came Ansem's voice from her right. "Somebody flipped it."

"Naminé," muttered DiZ darkly. "She is very clever." Mischa heard him take a blind step towards her. "Mischa, dear, are you still in here?"

"Y-yes," she replied meekly. She immediately lowered her arms as Naminé unlocked the shackles binding them to the wall.

"Follow me," she whispered, taking her wrist in her cold hand and dragging her to the left.

"Good, good," said DiZ, sounding relieved. "We'll get the light back on in a moment; don't be afraid."

It was too late for that, Mischa realized with amusement. Naminé pulled her around the black lair and then straight into somewhere extremely cold. She shivered as they ran down some kind of tunnel; though she cold see an eerie light at the end.

They reached the end; a blindingly white room. Mischa felt the girl's cold hand leave hers and she turned to look at her. She had stunning light blue eyes and blond hair swept to the side onto her shoulder. Her pale skin looked a little sickly, like she very rarely saw sunlight, and her short, white dress looked very worn.

"I am Naminé," she said kindly, extending her hand. "You must be Mischa."

"Yes," she replied, shaking Naminé's hand. "Thank you for getting me out of there; I like my heart to stay in my chest."

Namine laughed lightly. "Yes, I would hope so."

Mischa looked around at the room they were in. Despite the whiteness, there were drawings tacked to the walls, depicting people and strange designs. On the white table in the middle of the room were a few more drawings, and a few crayons scattered about. Light filtered in through the translucent white curtains.

"We're not far from DiZ's lair," Naminé said, sounding worried. "He's bound to find us very soon. But I just needed to get you out of there before he tried to take your heart."

"Take my heart?" echoed Mischa. "I thought he was just examining it?"

"He was," she replied bitterly. "He was examining it to find what was so special about it, and then once he found out, he was planning on holding it ransom to the Organization."

Mischa grimaced. "Why are they after my heart?"

Naminé shrugged. "I don't know. I don't know why they kept me alive, either, after Sora woke up."

"Why would they kill you?" Mischa was shocked.

"Because I know too much of their plans," she answered simply. "Once they're done with me, I'm a danger to them because I could tell the Organization and give them away." She sighed. "They know how close I am with Roxas, anyway."

"And Roxas is...?"

"Sora's Nobody." She laughed at the puzzled expression on Mischa's face. "A year ago, Sora found out that Kairi's heart was actually within his own, so he used his Keyblade to set it free and wake Kairi up. But because his heart left his body, he turned into a Heartless for a short period, and Roxas was created." Then she added affectionately, "I was created from that, as well."

That explained the cold hands. "You're Kairi's Nobody," Mischa inferred.

Naminé nodded. "Yes. Kairi is the only one capable of controlling Sora; that's why the Organization is after her, too."

"Axel kidnapped her," said Mischa suddenly. "Is he really working with the Organization?"

"I don't know," she replied thoughtfully. "Maybe he is, or maybe he's working in his own personal benefit."

Suddenly, the white door behind them flew open; Mischa stepped back, afraid it would be a furious DiZ. Instead, it was Sora, looking frazzled, with Donald and Goofy at his heels.

"Mischa," he gasped, out of breath from running. "There you are; we were attacked by Nobodies on the way here, Namine...where did you go?"

"DiZ's lair," Mischa replied, as casually as if they had been discussing the weather.

Sora's mouth dropped open. "DiZ? What did he want with you?"

"He knows the Organization wants her heart," Namine answered for her, "and so he wanted to hold her heart ransom to ruin their plans."

Sora stared, comprehending this. "And you rescued her? Does DiZ know yet?"

"I'm sure he does now," she replied, a hint of amusement in her voice. "You should get Mischa out of here; I'll deal with DiZ."

Sora nodded and beckoned to Mischa to follow them. She turned her head to look at Namine, who smiled.

"Don't worry about me," she said, her sweet voice unwavering and confident. "Just be careful, and I'll see you soon."

Mischa nodded and followed Sora out of the room. They had been in a mansion, she found; though it was deserted and broken down. They hurried down the steps of the right-most staircase and ran towards the front door; suddenly a dark warp hole appeared and DiZ emerged, looking furious yet composed, with Ansem standing stock-still at his side.

"Trying to escape, are we?" DiZ jeered. "Perhaps we should see how well you fare against a few dozen Nobodies, first?"

Mischa spun around, her adrenaline flowing through her veins. She was ready for this. With Sora, Donald, and Goofy at her side, she could take on a thousand of those stupid Nobodies.

They all started to appear at once; she and Sora gripped their Keyblades and swung forward, the Nobodies disappearing before their eyes. She swerved as a ball of fire shot past her; she turned to see Donald grinning sheepishly at her and waving his Mage's staff in apology.

A few moments and many slashes later, the Nobodies were gone and the foursome stood in the middle of the entrance hall, looking around expectantly for more danger.

DiZ began clapping. "Nice, nice, Mischa; fight, fight, fight!"

She whipped around to glare at him, only to see that it was Axel who was clapping, not DiZ. She beamed at him.

"Axel!" she exclaimed. The constant fear in her chest that had existed since their last encounter suddenly evaporated at the sight of his fiery red hair and bright green eyes. He looked alarmed at the sight of Sora's angry face.

"What did you do with Kairi?" Sora demanded, nostrils flaring.

He laughed at Sora's reaction. "Don't worry about her, man. She's fine. It's Misch you should be worried about."

He looked as stunned as Mischa felt. She knew that the Organization was after, but she hadn't expected to hear it from Axel.

"Why?" asked Sora and Mischa in unison.

The smile faded from Axel's face. "What the Organization's planning on doing to her, you mean? It's pretty rough."

Mischa gulped. "What should I do, Axel? Where should I go?"

Axel looked at her, considering her options. "I think the best thing you can do is come with me."

Mischa heart leaped in her chest; going on the run with Axel was a great idea.

"No!" roared DiZ, striding forwards. Mischa jumped; in her happiness at seeing Axel, she had completely forgotten about DiZ. "You must come with us, Mischa; we will keep you safe." He sent a burning glance at Axel.

"Yeah, by ripping my heart out of my chest!" retorted Mischa sarcastically.

"To keep it out of the Organization's hands," he pursued.

"Holding it ransom, you mean," she corrected harshly. "My heart isn't a toy, and I'm not going to let you fool around with it."

"But the Organization will!" he cried desperately, pointing a shaky finger at Axel. "And him, that lowlife scum, he's one of them! He'll lead you right into their trap!"

"No, he won't." She turned to Axel. "You'll protect me from them, right, Axel?"

Axel said nothing, but stared at DiZ with hatred in his emerald eyes and his carefully composed face. She ignored his silence, taking it as a yes.

"I'm going with Axel," she said, moving to his side, "because I trust him."

"You mustn't," gasped DiZ. "I won't let you, and neither will Sora." He and Mischa turned to look at Sora, who seemed clearly undecided.

"Tell me where Kairi is," he said flatly, glaring at Axel.

"She's in the Castle," Axel replied quietly. "But she's safe."

"No, she's not!" exclaimed Sora furiously. "She's in the hands of the Organization; who knows what they'll do to her!" His voice was teetering on the edge of hysteria.

"She's fine," he repeated firmly. "That's my final word on the matter." He turned back to DiZ. "Well, DiZ, I think Misch has made her choice. Better luck next time."

He slid his cold arm around Mischa's shoulder and pulled her towards his body. DiZ roared in protest as Axel mockingly saluted him and dragged Mischa into a dark warp hole.

"_After them_!" he shrieked; Mischa turned her head to see Dusk Nobodies pursuing them through the tunnel.

"I'll handle this," muttered Axel with a grin; he snapped his fingers and larger, tougher-looking Nobodies appeared, chasing the smaller ones back into the manor. The entrance to the warp hole closed when the last creature was out.

"That should hold Sora for a while," he said, satisfied. He retrieved his arm and stopped, grabbing Mischa by the shoulders and whirling her around to face him.

"I told you I'd find you," he said with a wink. Mischa blushed.

"And I said I'd be waiting," she replied sweetly.

"To die, yes," he said, laughing. "You really can't keep yourself out of trouble for a few hours, can you?"

She grinned. "Of course not."

He lifted his hand to brush some of her light brown hair out of her face; she shivered as his icy-cold hand touched her warm skin. "I'm glad you're still breathing, though."

"Barely," she said softly, savoring his touch. "I'm so glad to see you."

"Hmm," he murmured, gazing at her thoughtfully. "You really aren't afraid of me, are you?"

She blinked, puzzled. "No, I'm not. Am I supposed to be?"

He nodded slowly. "You should be."

"Well, I'm not." She shook her head as if to clarify her point. "So you'll just have to deal with it."

He laughed lightly. "I guess I will."

She gazed dreamily at him, not caring whether he thought her crazy or not. She loved him; she knew she did. The sparkle in his emerald green eyes; his perfect, confident face; his fiery red hair that was extremely difficult to miss in public; he just seemed so…human. He was so nice to her; he listened, and he cared…he was everything she had been missing for the past three years. And here he was, a few inches away, staring right back at her, hopefully mirroring her thoughts.

"Where are we going?" she said finally.

He hummed curiously. "I think we should just keep walking and see where we end up." They both turned and faced forward, and he took her cold hand in his. The tunnel they were in was fairly large, she noticed; lights of different blue and white hues swirled around them as they walked towards a bit of light, and Mischa could see no boundary to the tunnel: no walls, no ceiling.

"Axel," she said softly as they neared the light.

"Hmm?" he answered; she was surprised that he had heard her.

This was it; this was the time to tell him. They were mere inches from the end. "I love you."

A blinding white light hit her so hard that she gasped and crumbled to the ground, though she had experienced no pain at all. She hugged her arms around her chest, and, realizing that Axel was no longer holding her hand, opened her eyes in shock.

She was in a tiny whitish room, though it seemed to be more gray than white. Before her was a barred door; and outside stood Axel, his arms folded and his head facing downwards.

"Axel," she murmured, crawling towards the door on her hands and knees. She reached the door and sat up on her knees, gripping two adjacent bars and staring at him from the space between them. "Axel, what's going on? Where are we?"

His eyes slowly lifted to meet hers; she was surprised to find them bloodshot and sad. He was trying to communicate something to her with them, but she couldn't tell what.

Suddenly, a door creaked open from somewhere behind him; Axel's eyes closed and his face scrunched up in a painful expression.

"Nice job, Axel," came a voice from the doorway. "I knew we could count on you."

* * *

Author's Note: The romantic scene in the tunnel is sort of based off of the scenes with Bella and Edward from _Twilight_; I actually got a lot of ideas from that.


	12. Say All I Need

Author's Note: I found so many songs that pertain to this story that I just HAD to incorporate them into it. That's why there's two of these intermission thingies.

* * *

Do you know where your heart is?  
Do you think you can find it?  
Or did you trade it for something  
Somewhere better just to have it?  
Do you know where your love is?  
Do you think that you lost it?  
You felt it so strong, but  
Nothing's turned out how you wanted.

Well, bless my soul,  
You're a lonely soul.  
'Cause you won't let go,  
Of anything you hold.

Well, all I need  
Is the air I breathe  
And a place to rest my head.

Do you know what your fate is?  
And are you trying to shake it?  
You're doing your best and  
Your best look,  
You're praying that you make it.

Well, bless my soul,  
You're a lonely soul.  
'Cause you won't let go,  
Of anything you hold.

Well, all I need  
Is the air I breathe  
And a place to rest my head.

I said I all I need  
Is the air I breathe  
And a place to rest my head.

Do you think you can find it?  
Do you think you can find it?  
Do you think you can find it  
Better than you had it?  
Do you think you can find it?  
Do you think you can find it?  
Do you think you can find it?  
Yeah, better than you had it (Better than you had it)

I said I all I need  
Is the air I breathe  
And a place to rest my head.

I said I all I need  
Is the air I breathe  
And a place to rest my head.

Whenever the end is,  
Do you think you can see it?  
Well, until you get there,  
Go on, go ahead and scream it,  
Just say it.

---

_I may be a new player, but I've learned that following the rules will end up destroying you in a game like this. Therefore, I've decided that it is best if I trust no one, and follow my own intuition._

_Speaking of intuition; I keep getting the feeling that I'm waiting for something._

_Although, to be fair, it isn't only the thought of waiting for something; it's more like the feeling of _dread_ing something._

_What, I can't be sure of. Though if I'm dreading it, it can't be something good, can it?_

_

* * *

_

Author's Note: song is "Say (All I Need)" by OneRepublic


	13. Sympathy

Author's Note: Again, another idea formed from Stephenie Meyer's _Twilight_, except this idea comes from _New Moon_.

* * *

The Gummi Ship was quieter than ever this evening as they sailed aimlessly past various worlds. Without Mischa to explain things to, Sora, Donald, and Goofy found themselves not talking about anything.

Sora took a deep breath. Someone had to break this tense silence. "So do you think Mischa's okay, wherever she is?"

Donald and Goofy both turned to look at him. "Gawrsh, I hope so," said Goofy sadly.

"She should've trusted us," mumbled Donald. "Axel was just the delivery boy."

"How do you know, though?" Sora protested; not in Axel's defense, but in Mischa's. "How do you know if Axel didn't change his mind and hide her away somewhere so the Organization can't find her?"

Neither said anything for a moment. Then Donald sighed. "Maybe," he admitted.

"I have a bad feeling," Goofy agreed.

"I don't know where to find her, though," said Sora distantly. "I don't know where Axel took her."

"Maybe she's in the same place as Kairi," said Goofy hopefully. Sora perked up at that.

"You're right," he conceded, slightly happier. "Let's go back to Twilight Town; we've got to find them!"

---

Love was a funny thing. It could make you or break you; and so far it had done both to Mischa.

She sat, curled up in a ball, in the corner of the room; or, as she now affectionately called it, the jail cell. The jail that held silly, naïve girls who couldn't keep control of their hearts.

She hugged her knees to her chest, trying to contain the hole in her heart that was about to tear open. Every time she thought of him, every time his voice resounded in her head, the edges would flare as if they were being burned.

It was like her parents' deaths all over again. The sadness, the denial, the gaping hole in her chest that was irritated by every stray thought or whim. It was all too familiar; she had prayed that this feeling would never haunt her again; but it had.

Axel had betrayed her.

The words echoed in her mind, over and over and over again. She could feel the tears springing to her eyes, the warm salty droplets welling beneath her eyelids, and scrunched them up so they couldn't come out. She refused to cry; crying was a sign of weakness, and right now she needed all the strength she could muster.

The door outside creaked open, but Mischa didn't dare look to see who it was. The sound of footsteps coming nearer to her cell echoed against the white walls of the outer room, and she held her breath, afraid of whom it would be. When he spoke, though, she was relieved to find that it was not Axel.

"Mischa," he called softly. "Are you ready to go?"

She finally looked towards the barred doorway. Through her teary eyes, she could see the blurry outline of a man with long, blue hair, and one of those clichéd black cloaks. She wiped her eyes on the back of her hand so she could see clearly and crawled forward. Tiny droplets still sat on her lashes, but she could see the man up close now, in better detail. A large scar in the shaped of an 'X' occupied his face; the middle point of the X crossed on the bridge of his nose and the tips ended at his hairline and ran to his upper cheeks. His eyes were light but cruel as he looked down at her in obvious disdain.

"Come with me," he directed, reached through the bars to hold out his hand. Mischa accepted it; what was the point of refusing? He pulled her up to her feet and tugged her through the bars; she found herself falling through them as if they were only an illusion. The man quickly let go of her hand, as if she had contracted some kind of contagious disease, and motioned for her to follow him. They walked out of the white room and turned to the left, down a gray hallway. Mischa was not surprised to find this place without lighting fixtures.

He led her down the hallway a few yards, and then turned abruptly into a doorway that she hadn't noticed. It was white, unsurprisingly, and was empty but for a large pod-like structure and a sinister-looking machine to the left of it.

The man pointed at the structure. "Get inside," he instructed. She wiped her face clean of any emotion and walked forward, climbed into the pod and stood up inside it. Suddenly, black whips appeared out of nowhere inside the pod and wrapped securely around her wrists and ankles. She heard a thud and realized that the whips had dragged her to the back of the pod, facing forward.

The man laughed at her shock. "They are but a precaution," he explained, "so that you cannot escape."

She had no intention of escaping, but wriggled her hands just in case; but the whips were so tight that she could barely move them.

He laughed again. "Oh, dear me. Axel, I think you should have a look at this," he called behind him.

Anxiety nibbled at the edges of the hole. _No, _she thought desperately, a_nyone but him. _She heard the footsteps long before she felt them, and when he appeared in the doorway, she wondered if her heart was capable of collapsing, if it hadn't already.

He looked much different from when she had first met him. Though his facial features were just as handsome, his eyes lacked sparkle; in fact, they looked blank and distant as he walked slowly into the room, carefully avoiding her gaze.

"What is it, Saïx?" he asked quietly. "Did you need something?"

"_We _need her heart," Saïx, the man with the X, answered tartly. "And now we finally have it, thanks to you, Axel."

"You don't have it yet," he replied, more quietly still. "It's still in her body."

"But we can wrench it out by very simple means," said Saïx, his voice like glass. "And we shall."

Mischa cleared her throat to get their attention. She had to know, she had to ask. Axel didn't move, but Saïx turned and looked at her expectantly.

"So why is it _my_ heart that you need?" she inquired, looking desperately from Saïx's slightly amused face to Axel's grave one. "Why is it mine and not Sora's? Sora is the Keyblade bearer; I'm no one important."

"On the contrary, my dear," replied Saïx smoothly. "Your heart is crucial to our plans."

"Is it me you need, or is it just my heart?" She turned to Axel. "Answer me, Axel," she said fiercely, the hole flaring in protest as she said his name, "was it me, or my heart?"

Axel's eyes remained downcast. Saïx noticed this and laughed shortly. "Oh, don't tell me. You were under the impression that Axel here was befriending you so he could actually be your friend. Ha! You're sorely mistaken, my dear."

"He wasn't my friend," she wanted to say. "He was so much more than that." She swallowed, finding her throat had gone quite dry. "Then, why _was_ he befriending me?" she asked instead, finding it was less painful to speak to Saïx about Axel rather than speaking directly to Axel.

"Because I told him to," said a voice from the doorway. Mischa looked up to see another cloaked man with long white hair and eyes the same topaz color as Saïx striding into the room.

"Xemnas," said Saïx, stepping back to give him space.

Xemnas looked up at Mischa and smiled, as grandly as if he had been welcoming her to a dinner party. "Mischa, my dear; we meet again!"

"Again?" she and Axel said in unison; Axel no longer looked depressed, but instead looked alert.

But Xemnas paid no mind to Axel. "Why yes, don't you remember? I came to your home one day, over a week ago. You were outside in your garden, harvesting vegetables for the splendid dinner you were making."

The image of a cloaked figure standing under the tree in her backyard entered Mischa's mind. "You asked me if I could see the key formation in the leaves," she remembered. "And I could."

"You could," he echoed, nodding. "It was a sign, meant for me but shown to you. It told me that my inference about you was correct; that you were indeed the heart we needed." He turned towards Axel, who stared back at him without emotion. "You're all probably wondering why I chose Axel to do the dirty work of befriending Mischa here."

"Yes, we are," said Saïx obediently.

"Well, I would have done it myself, of course. Mischa is a very lovely young lady." He smiled and winked at her; Mischa looked away, disgusted. "But I saw the need for Axel to redeem himself to the Organization. After his ordeals with the others, I was not entirely sure whose side he was really on."

Saïx made a sound that sounded like "hmph"; Axel pursed his lips in distaste.

"It was the perfect plan, if I do say so myself. Axel had the chance to show his true colors, and we Nobodies would be able to live as human beings." He looked at Mischa. "Perfect, isn't it?"

She narrowed her eyes and glared at him fearlessly. "At the expense of my life, right?"

Xemnas chuckled as if she had told some witty joke. "Your life is only one of many, my child," he replied easily. "Kingdom Hearts is currently full of thousands of hearts; courtesy of your friend Sora."

She wondered what he meant by this. Thinking back, she pictured swinging at a Heartless; when it disappeared, its heart floated up towards the sky.

"So you're saying," she said slowly, "that whenever Sora kills a Heartless, the heart is released and goes to…Kingdom Hearts?"

Xemnas nodded. "Precisely."

"And does Sora know this?" she continued, worry creeping into her voice.

He shook his head and smiled. "No, he does not. He has no idea of the help he has given us."

Sora was helping them, and he didn't even know it! But she saw Axel nod inconspicuously, and she realized that he had secretly told him. Saïx glanced at him suspiciously, but said nothing.

"Now, I think, Saïx, that we should give Axel some time alone with the girl, to say some…last words." They quickly walked out, leaving Axel and Mischa alone in the room, an awkward silence brewing around them.

Seconds ticked by, and Mischa could tell that Axel was not going to start the conversation. So she took a deep breath in an attempt to douse the angry flames in her chest, and opened her mouth.

"Why'd you do it, Axel?" she asked quietly, trying to convey her massive disappointment to him.

"I had to," he said, not looking at her. "It was my only chance."

The anger flared up again. "What kind of a man are you?" she wanted to know. Then she added scathingly, "If you're a man at all."

"I'm not a man," he mumbled. "You know that."

"You're right," she conceded. "You're a monster." She spit out the last word, disgusted.

He winced, though he knew he deserved it. "I betrayed the others so easily," he said, seemingly to himself. He looked up and met her eyes for the first time since he'd entered the room. "I never, ever thought that betraying you would be so hard."

"You don't have emotions," she reminded him, as if it made a difference. "So it's a helluva lot harder on me that it is for you."

He smiled a little. "You and I have something in common, Mischa," he said distantly. "We're both missing someone dear to us, someone we've lost. Someone we thought was gone, but really was there all along."

"And who is that?" she asked softly, the hole starting to sew itself shut.

"My best friend," he replied easily. "Roxas."

"Sora's Nobody," she said quietly.

He looked surprised. "How do you know that?"

"Naminé told me when she rescued me from DiZ's lair."

He nodded. "Hmm." He stepped forward until his chest was touching the pod. "Mischa, listen to me," he said urgently, his voice low. "I'm going to get you out of here; I only brought you here to trick them into thinking I'm on their side."

Mischa raised her eyebrows. "And why should I believe you?"

He narrowed his eyes and stared at her intensely. "Do you want out of here, or not? Now listen to me. I want you to go along with whatever they say. I'll request them to give you some time and put you back in the cell. Naminé will come get you and take you away."

She considered this for a moment. It sounded easy enough, and Axel seemed sincere...but there was also the prospect of having nowhere to go that she had to think about.

"Yoroido is gone, though," she said sadly. "My parents are dead, and you're not even real...I have nothing left to live for."

He suddenly banged his fist against the clear wall of the pod. "Don't ever say that!" he hissed angrily. "You have a soul; you have everything to live for! Don't ever give up!"

She nodded numbly. There was no use arguing with him at this point. "All right, fine, I'll do it."

He nodded, satisfied. "I thought so. Now, Mischa," he said, dropping his voice again. "When you get out, I want you to forget about me."

"What?" she gasped. No, she couldn't, there was no way...

"You must," he pressed. "If Sora succeeds, Yoroido will come back, and you can go live the way you were before I came."

She shook her head furiously. "I don't want that."

"But I do," he said, his eyes flashing amusement. "I'm your mentor, remember? Follow my instructions, always."

She sighed, resigned. "Will you be satisfied if I try to forget you? Even just a little?"

He laughed. "I won't be satisfied until I'm completely out of your thoughts for good."

"I guess you'll never be happy, then."

He hummed. "I guess not."

The door suddenly opened behind him, and Xemnas and Saïx strode into the room. Axel backed away from the pod, his green eyes staying on hers.

"Are we ready now?" asked Saïx, sounding impatient. "I can almost hear my new heart beating."

"I think we should give her some time alone first," said Axel, his eyes flashing meaningfully. "In her cell, of course."

Saïx roared in protest, but Xemnas held up his hand. "Very well, Mischa," he said flatly. "But first, I think you should see something."

Axel's eyebrows lowered in uncertainty, and a shiver ran up her spine as Saix walked over to the right of the room and pressed his palm to the wall. Mischa held her breath as a section of the wall slowly rotated, revealing another pod full of some cloudy substance. She peered closely at it as smoke billowed out of the bottom.

* * *

Author's Note: Lol. I don't think Saïx was actually as menacing as I made him in this story, but oh well.


	14. Fade Into You

Author's Note: This one's probably my favorite chapter. Enjoy.

* * *

Mischa screamed at the sight before her eyes. The pod cleared of white steam and inside was a man and a woman, fast asleep, and suspended by the same whips that currently held Mischa.

Her parents.

The hole in her chest ripped open and three years of angst poured out in an anguished scream. The tears came suddenly, pouring down her face and into her open mouth; she vaguely tasted the salty liquid on her tongue. She tried to clutch at her chest, to try to hold the hole shut, but her hands were fastened to the walls of the pod.

"No," she gasped, starting to hyperventilate. "No, no, no, no."

"Oh, dear," said Xemnas thoughtfully. "Funny, I thought she'd be happy to see them after three long, hard years."

"Who are they?" demanded Axel.

"Oh, as if you didn't already know," sneered Saïx. "Xemnas didn't trust you to bring the girl here, so he had me sic the Namazu on their unsuspecting boat and make it look like they were killed at sea."

Mischa's heart froze in her chest. The imaginary cold numbed her mind for a moment; then an image burst through the ice. The painful image of the boat sinking…a black-cloaked figure standing mysteriously at the helm as the waves crashed over it…

"You," she hissed; it was the only thing she could manage. "You did this."

Saïx smiled. "It will keep you from leaving, won't it? Keeping your parents ransom?"

Mischa saw the color drain out of Axel's face. "Her parents?" He stepped towards Saïx, his pair of chakram appearing in his hands. "You kidnapped her parents to bring her here?"

"Of course," he replied smoothly. He held out his hand and a large blue claymore appeared in it. "You were untrustworthy, Axel. We needed a back-up plan."

"She's here now, so let them go!" he shouted, the chakram in his clenched fists erupting in flames.

Saïx shook his head tauntingly. "No, I don't think so. You see, Axel, I know you are just going to set her free. This way, though, she'll have a reason to stay."

Axel growled and whipped one of his chakram at him. Saïx tilted his heavy-looking claymore to the left to block his attack. Axel then turned and threw the other chakram at Mischa's head. She ducked, and found that the fire had singed the whips and set her hands free. She bent over, wrenched the whips off her ankles, and jumped out of the pod. Xemnas watched passively as she ran out of the room, making no move to stop her.

She skidded to a halt outside the doorway and looked around. Axel had said that Naminé would come get her if she went back to the cell. She ran back to the room with the cell, deciding to leave her parents there for the moment. Once she was out of this nightmare of a place, she would double back for them.

She hurried into the room and the door slammed shut on its own accord behind her. She gripped the bars of the cell door, only to find that she could not get in. She groaned and slid down onto her knees. How will she get out of here now?

"Hello?" said a female voice from inside the cell.

Mischa looked up abruptly. "Naminé?" she asked hopefully. Maybe she did have a chance.

The girl scuffled to her feet and walked over from her spot in the dark corner. She certainly was not Naminé, though she did have some sort of resemblance. Her hair was dark red, but her eyes were the same color blue as Naminé's. She wore a pink zipper-down mini dress and purple sneakers.

"I'm Kairi," she clarified, looking down at her with concern. Mischa scrambled to her feet, shocked.

"Kairi!" she exclaimed happily. "You're here…Sora's been looking all over for you!"

"Sora?" she asked abruptly. "You've seen him? Where is he?"

"I was traveling with them for a little while, before I ended up here," she admitted. "The last time I saw him was in Twilight Town."

Kairi looked worried. "I hope he's all right…"

"How did you get here?" Mischa wanted to know. "You weren't here earlier."

"Well, Axel kidnapped me from my island," she reflected thoughtfully, "and brought me here. He was going to let me go, though, but this other guy took me and locked me in here."

"Who was it?" she pressed.

"He had blue hair and an X-shaped scar on his face." She made a face. "He wasn't very nice."

Mischa suddenly noticed that there was a dog in the cell behind Kairi. He wagged his tail at the sight of her staring at him.

"Where did he come from?" she asked. Kairi turned to her head to look.

"Oh, I followed him, actually," she said with a laugh. "I was trying to get away from Axel, and he ran into the warp hole, so I followed him."

Mischa grinned at the dog. "Well, Axel told me how to get out of here. He said Naminé will rescue us."

As if on cue, a dark warp hole appeared on the wall behind Kairi and the dog and a blond head peeked through it. Kairi turned around, and Naminé motioned for her to follow her. She did not look at Mischa.

"Wait," she called, as Kairi took her hand and stepped into the warp hole. "Don't leave me here!"

---

"Naminé!"

In the white realm of nothingness, Kairi looked pleadingly into her other half's expectant blue eyes.

"In the cell they had me in," she said, quite out of breath from the unfamiliar inter-realm travel, "there was another girl-"

Naminé cut her off with a curt reply. "I know."

"But…wha-" Kairi faltered. "But…Mischa…she's alone…and scared, and…_and you can't just leave her there!"_

"I won't," she promised. "I'll go back for her soon. But DiZ told me that I needed to get you out of there first. He said you're more important to his plans than Mischa is."

"Why?" inquired Kairi uneasily.

"Because you alone have power over Sora."

"But I thought they needed Mischa's heart to unleash Kingdom Hearts?"

She shook her head. "DiZ figured it out: it's all a ruse. They do need Mischa's heart, but they need Sora's Keyblade to unlock it. Her Keyblade isn't strong enough to do that."

"So why do they need me?" Hysteria was creeping into her voice.

"They're using you as bait to lure Sora to the Castle," she answered. "If you're not there, Sora won't come, and their plans will be unraveled."

"So, what about Mischa?" she asked, thinking of the poor girl, all alone and about to face her death.

"I'll go back for her," she said again. "I just need to get you somewhere safe, first."

---

Sora burst through the doors of the manor, looking around wildly.

"It's gotta be here," he muttered, running towards the stairs. Donald and Goofy followed on his heels, exchanging puzzled glances. "This manor's got something special about it; there's gotta be a portal here somewhere."

They turned right, hurried past the doorway to Naminé's white room, and into the door that led to the library. He touched a strange design on the brown table in the middle of the room, and backed away as the floor beneath them fizzed away, as if it had only been an illusion. A gray room appeared on a lower level; he shot down the stairs and looked around the room for a door.

"There!" shouted Donald, pointing to the far left. Sora almost tripped as he ran forward, shoving the door open. They were in a dark room, lit only by a computer system with blue fluorescent screens. There was no one there; their footsteps echoed off the dark walls as they walked in.

"This is it," said Sora resolutely. "It's in here somewhere." He motioned for the other two to look around the room for something pertaining to a portal.

"Hey, lookie here!" exclaimed Goofy. Sora and Donald whipped around to see Goofy standing in a niche in the center wall, next to the computer, examining a small blue beam of light that they had not noticed before. Sora walked towards it, his hand out.

"Sora, what are you doing?" asked Donald worriedly. "You don't know what that light even is!"

"I'm going to find out," he said recklessly. "I have to find Mischa and Kairi before it's too late!"

His hand illuminated under the light and his body disappeared. Donald and Goofy exchanged resigned glances and followed his through the light.

They appeared in what seemed to be the exact same room; the only difference being that the computer had been completely destroyed. Someone had evidently attacked it until it was broken beyond repair, for each of the screens was cracked and the light behind the glass screens seemed to sizzle.

Donald and Goofy noticed – with some annoyance on Donald's part – that Sora had not waited for them, and had instead ran ahead through the corresponding door. They found him standing in the middle of a blue room with a glowing green design of a square on a diamond on the floor, facing towards the corner of the room. Upon closer inspection, Donald and Goofy realized that there was a strange round shape situated there.

"A portal," said Goofy relevantly.

"To the darkness," added Donald.

"This is it," said Sora confidently. "This'll lead us to the darkness, and to Mischa and Kairi."

Without further ado, he marched towards the warp hole, Donald and Goofy right behind him.

---

Mischa's head ached from her banging it against the wall in denial. What else was she supposed to do? Axel's plan had failed; Naminé had not come and taken her away. Now she would be stuck here, in this dreary castle, forever: her heart would be used to give the Nobodies their own happy lives, and her soulless body would be buried underneath the floorboards for all eternity.

Why her? she wondered. Why couldn't she just go back to Yoroido and live a normal life, as if this nightmare had never happened? What was so important about her heart that placed her above all others, even Sora?

_Sora_…her heart was overcome with anxiety as she heard his name in her head. Was he all right? Were Donald and Goofy still with him? Was he any closer to stopping the Organization from executing their evil schemes?

Suddenly, the door to the room swung open with a bang; she turned and looked, afraid of what she might see, but was relieved to find it was Axel, still in one piece.

"What happened with Saïx?" she inquired, standing up gracefully and taking in his frazzled appearance with concern.

"I took care of him," he said dismissively. "Why are you still here? Didn't Naminé come for you?"

Mischa explained to him how Kairi had been in the cell when she came back, and that Naminé had indeed come, but had taken Kairi instead of her.

He looked stunned. "I thought for sure…" he muttered, his voice trailing off. "Well, there's no time to worry about it now. Come with me; I have a feeling Sora is in trouble."

He waved his hand at the wall behind Mischa and a black warp hole appeared. He walked over to it, grabbed her hand, and pulled her into the darkness.

---

Sora, Donald, and Goofy appeared in a large, long tunnel of swirling blue colors. The surface was transparent but somehow flat, and some ways away was a bright light.

"What is this place?" Sora called into the nothingness.

Donald looked around. "Well, which way should we go?"

Sora ran forward without hesitation. "Kairi! Mischa!" he shouted, looking from left to right. Suddenly, a few Dusk Nobodies appeared around them, dancing their taunting dance.

Sora performed his recently perfected reversal move: he quickly slid around the creature, confusing it, and then swung. Donald summoned his Thundaga power to shock the creatures, and Goofy plowed his shield into the nearby Nobodies. Finally, Sora held out his Keyblade and emitted three spheres of light that surrounded him and defeated the remaining creatures.

"Piece of cake," he mumbled, but found he had spoken too soon; more creatures appeared in front of them, and then more behind.

"What the-?" sputtered Goofy.

"It's no use!" shouted Sora resolutely.

"Don't stop moving, or the darkness will overtake you!" said a voice knowingly from behind them. A flash of black and red jumped in front of them, and they realized that it was Axel.

"Get going!" he directed, gripping his chakram, ready for a fight.

"Why?" said Sora, narrowing his eyes and glaring at Axel suspiciously.

"Don't ask, just do it!" A stray Dusk came up behind Axel and knocked him over. Sora swung at the creatures surrounding Axel's body and ran towards him.

"Are you okay?"

Axel pushed himself up with his forearms. "I kidnapped Kairi, but she got away from me," he explained, looking slightly annoyed that Sora had not followed his orders. "Then Saïx captured her; got it memorized? Now, go save her!"

"What about Mischa?" Sora asked, looking around for their friend.

"She's fine; she's with me," he said flatly. "I brought her along."

Sora felt a light tap on his left shoulder, and then felt it descend as someone used him as a kind of balance beam for a front-flip. He looked up and saw Mischa grinning at him, upside-down; she landed gracefully next to Axel and bent over to help him up, placing his arm on her shoulders as he stood up.

"You're exhausted," she said softly.

"I'm fine," he snapped, retrieving his arm and twisting his chakram in his hands. "I can take 'em, easy."

She shrugged and held out her hand for her Keyblade, which promptly appeared in her clenched fist. She ran forward, jumped off Goofy's shield and attacked the Nobodies. Sora, Donald, and Goofy followed her, and Axel jumped and slid forward, a wall of flames appearing in his haste.

"Are you okay?" Sora shouted over to Mischa, who was battling a particularly tough Nobody.

"I'll explain everything later," she shouted back. "I'm just glad you guys are all right!"

"Ah-hyunk!" laughed Goofy, whacking a Nobody with his shield. "We're just a little shaken up is all!"

"A little?" protested Donald, freezing a creature with a blast of ice from his Mage's staff.

Mischa rolled her eyes and doubled back to fight alongside Axel. He ignited his chakram and threw one after the other at a group of Dusks huddled together a few yards away.

"I taught you well," he commented knowingly, watching her ferociously fight a creature.

The creature dissipated upon a final strike and Mischa beamed at him. "You did," she agreed. "And I thank you for it."

Her smile faded as she turned as saw that the Nobodies had begun to multiply rapidly. Sora and the others joined them in the middle of the tunnel.

"I think I liked it better when they were on _my_ side," muttered Axel, glancing around worriedly.

Sora turned his head and looked at him smugly. "Feeling a little…regret?"

Axel considered this. "Nah, I can handle these punks. Watch this!" He leaped forward and landed a few yards away. He released his chakram, which had ignited and began spinning around his body, and looked above him, furiously concentrating. He pulled in his arms, a long groan escaping from his chest as he summoned energy, and then shouted as he released it, a white explosion of flame encompassing them for the moment.

They opened their eyes and all was clear and quiet. Ahead of them, a rose-colored portal had appeared, swirling, inviting them inside. Sora heard Mischa scream and spun around to see her running towards a black shape lying on the ground. With a jolt, he realized it was Axel; he came closer and saw that he was fading.

"No," she gasped, shaking, collapsing onto his chest. "No, no, you can't, you have to stay, I can't do…"

"Mischa," he said softly; she looked up and blinked blearily at him.

"I can't do this without you," she whispered brokenly.

"Yes, you can," he said firmly. "You have the power within you; you don't need my help."

She shook her head, tears welling up behind her eyelids. "Don't leave me."

He laughed lightly. "That's not really my decision, Misch. You'll be fine; just stay with Sora, and forget me."

"I won't forget you," she said stubbornly. "Not if you made me."

"Not even as my dying wish?" he joked, gesturing to his fading body.

She shook her head again, but smiled. "Nope."

He smiled back at her thoughtfully. "I wish I could say that I love you, Misch," he said quietly. "But, under the circumstances, I guess the most I can give you is that you make me feel like I actually have a heart." He weakly raised his arm up to her face and brushed his fingers against her cheek; she shivered at his cold touch. "I'm sorry, by the way. For hurting you." He looked at Sora, who had appeared on his other side. "And Sora, I'm sorry that I got Kairi involved."

Sora's eyebrows knit together. "Axel…what were you trying to do?"

"I wanted to see Roxas," he replied easily. "He…was the only one I liked." His eyes looked distant, as if he had just remembered something important. "Now go, find Kairi," he said urgently. "She's in the castle dungeon." He looked at Mischa one last time. "I'll see you again, Misch, in the next life," he said firmly. "Just try to forget about me until then, will you? And try to stay out of trouble."

She grinned at him, blinking back tears. "I'll be waiting."

His figure became increasingly fuzzy, and within seconds, he was gone.

* * *

Author's Note: (tears) That makes me sad every single time I watch it. Except it would be much better with the part about Mischa. XD


	15. Walk On

Author's Note: This one's pretty long…try not to get too bored lol.

* * *

"She's not in the dungeon anymore," Mischa was saying as they entered Axel's portal. "I was there with her. Naminé came and took her away."

"Where did she take her?" asked Sora worriedly, his voice lacking its usual luster.

"I don't know," she replied honestly, looking around. "Where are we?"

That was a very good question. They were in some sort of dark alleyway, though something about it seemed unreal. As they turned, a dark town with neon lights loomed into view. In the sky above, behind a turret of a massive castle, was a gigantic moon, in the shape of a heart.

"Even if Kairi isn't there," said Goofy thoughtfully, "welp, we'd better find a way to get to that castle."

"Right," said Sora, nodding. They walked forward, their feet making echoing clanking noises as they walked over a sewer grate devoid of any water. As they turned the corner, a few small Heartless creatures appeared from under the ground.

"Heartless?" yelped Donald, whipping out his staff.

"Of course," said Mischa, brandishing her Keyblade. "A dark, spooky town; perfect for Heartless."

The weak creatures were easy to defeat; in moments they were on their way, running down an eerily dark alleyway. More Heartless appeared, but Sora declared that they would leave them and continue running towards the castle. A building with glowing yellow windows lighted the road, and right ahead was a clearing with strange elevated platforms that had pipes connecting them to the walls. Mischa, Donald, and Goofy followed Sora's example, ignored the appearing Heartless, and kept on running. Turning another corner, they found themselves in what appeared to be the town square. The neon signs above them flickered as droplets of rain suddenly began to fall.

Sora looked up, blinking away the drops that had formed on his face. Behind a building lit by a green glow was the heart-shaped moon. He and Mischa walked forward, in the direction of the moon.

"Sora! Mischa!" shouted Donald; they whipped around to find Donald and Goofy being held back by the swords of two Samurai Nobodies. Ahead of them, a black warp hole materialized and out stepped a short man in a black cloak. He held out his hand and a dark Keyblade appeared there.

"A Keyblade?" said Sora, stunned. The man ran towards him, and Mischa jumped out of the way as they clashed blades. The man suddenly disappeared, and Sora froze, staring ahead blankly.

Mischa waited a moment, watching his face carefully, before walking uncertainly over to him. "Sora?" she asked tentatively. Donald and Goofy came up behind him, tapping his shoulder curiously.

Sora suddenly gasped; Donald and Goofy jumped back in alarm. "You make a good other," he said slowly.

"What?" asked Mischa worriedly. "Are you all right, Sora?"

He blinked. "What…just happened?"

"Gawrsh, I dunno," replied Goofy honestly. "You just froze."

"Oh." Sora narrowed his eyes, trying to remember something. "He said…he defeated Riku…"

"Who said that?" interjected Donald. Sora turned his head.

"That guy, in the black coat."

Donald walked forward, looking at him knowingly. "But no one can defeat Riku," he said encouragingly.

"Y-yeah, you're right," said Sora, sounding relieved. He turned to face them.

"A black coat means Organization XIII," said Goofy. "He musta been trying to trick ya."

"I don't know," murmured Mischa uncertainly. "It seems a little odd."

The foursome were quiet for a moment, thinking.

"You're just tired, Sora," said Donald resolutely.

"Maybe," muttered Sora. Mischa looked unconvinced.

"C'mon, let's just find a way into that castle," said Goofy optimistically. He and Donald began walking in the direction of the moon. Sora and Mischa looked at each other and shrugged.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled, so that Donald and Goofy would not hear. "About Axel. I know you…cared about him a lot."

She nodded and lifted one shoulder in a shrug. "I did," she replied just as quietly, her voice laced with sadness. "I really, really did. But, I suppose he's in a better place now; hopefully he's happy."

"Maybe he has a heart now," Sora joked, obviously trying to lighten the mood. She laughed.

"Maybe." She exhaled slowly, as if she had been holding her breath for a long time. "Remember how I told you that my parents were dead?"

Sora thought for a moment. "Yeah," he said finally. "They died in a boating accident, right?"

She shook her head. "I thought they did, but in reality, Saïx captured them and has been holding them in that castle." She found it funny that she was talking about reality in such a parallel universe, but did not share this with Sora. "He showed me them, and Axel -" she bit her lip, feeling the monster beginning to claw through the messy seams of the hole in her chest, "- Axel got really angry and fought him; that's why he was so weak back there in the tunnel." She took a deep breath, trying to calm her nerves. "So I guess you and I both have people we care about being held captive by the Organization."

Sora looked shocked. "You mean…for three years you've…"

"Thought they were dead, yeah." She looked up at the moon, using all of her self-control to hold back her tears. "They didn't trust Axel to bring me to them, so they unleashed the giant Heartless Namazu on our boat and waited until I had brought the kids ashore so that no one would know." She looked back at Sora, whose mouth had fallen open in astonishment. "So I think we should hurry and get to that castle," she said casually, hoping Sora would get the message.

He did. "Definitely," he agreed, grabbing her hand and pulling her after Donald and Goofy, who had walked off along the leftmost side of the large building. "We'll free them soon, don't worry," he said resolutely.

And she believed him.

---

"Naminé, I want to go back!" protested Kairi, tugging on her other half's pale, cold hand.

Naminé had brought her to the white room in the manor; the miscellaneous drawings were still scattered around the room. She shook her head.

"No, Kairi," she replied placidly. "You have to stay here."

"Whhyy?" She could hear herself whining, but she did not care. "Sora's coming to find me; what will happen when he risks his life to come save me and I'm not even there?"

Naminé considered this for a moment. "You're probably right," she conceded grudgingly. "I'll bring you back to the cell; but you have to be extremely careful, okay?"

Kairi nodded. "Okay."

"Never let your guard down," she murmured as she waved at the wall, opening a portal. "Not for a second."

Kairi smiled at her as she walked into the portal.

Naminé had directed her to a different cell. This one had a purple glow on its interior, and was three times larger than the other one.

She sat down and hugged her knees to her chest, unsure of what to do. She suddenly heard footsteps, and stood up eagerly, expecting Sora or Mischa. But as she gripped the bars of the cell door, she was disappointed to see Saïx walking towards her. He stopped a few feet away from the bars and looked hard at her.

"What are you going to do with us?" she asked recklessly; though she had a feeling he would tell her.

Saïx looked at her for a second longer, seemingly deliberating. "You're the fire that feeds Sora's anger," he said simply. He lingered there for a second, then turned and began walking the same way he had come.

"No…" she murmured, watching him walk nonchalantly away. "Sora's in danger because of me. I can't just stay in here."

A warp hole appeared behind her and Naminé appeared, holding out her hand.

"Come back!" she pressed, gesturing for her to come with her. "I'll get you out of here."

Kairi shook her head worriedly. "If I'm not here…" she began.

"Believe in yourself!" interjected Naminé impatiently. "Come with me!"

Kairi walked forward quickly, sensing Naminé's haste. She took her hand and stepped into the portal once again.

---

Sora, Donald, Mischa and Goofy stood at the edge of a cliff; apparently the end of town. Before them was the castle; it was huge and gray, with a few turrets and, and on the front most turret, there was a strange emblem that looked like a heart connected with an X.

"This must be it," breathed Mischa. "It looks so different from the outside."

Sora looked at her. "How did you get in?" He gestured to the lack of a bridge.

"I just woke up in a jail cell," she replied unhelpfully.

Sora lifted his hand to scratch his head when his Keyblade appeared in his hand. His eyes lit up in revelation and he pointed it towards the castle. A round light emitted from the Keyblade and a surface materialized in front of them, leading up to the castle.

"Nice job, Sora!" exclaimed Goofy. He and Donald hurried forward, not bothering to wait for Sora and Mischa.

She was staring at his Keyblade. "How were you chosen to wield that?" she asked.

Sora knew that she meant no offense with this question. "I dunno," he shrugged. "It all happened pretty quickly for me, too."

She nodded. They then ran forward after the others, who were almost to the top.

"C'mon, you slowpokes!" shouted Donald jeeringly. Mischa and Sora both laughed and quickened their pace.

At the top, there were a few adjoining platforms. Sora looked around.

"Kairi, where are you?" he shouted. Mischa clamped her hand over his mouth without warning.

"Shh, Sora!" she whispered, glancing around uncertainly. "Remember where we are; this is the Organization's stronghold!"

"Yeah, they could be anywhere," added Donald disapprovingly. Sora nodded mutely.

"Be careful," said Goofy warningly; they suddenly became alert as a quiet hiss echoed off the walls. "I think we've got company!"

---

Naminé led Kairi running down a few ramps leading to exterior platforms on the castle. As they turned the corner, they halted in the middle of the ramp as three large Nobodies appeared and Saïx materialized in front of them.

"Naminé, there you are," he said quietly, though his voice echoed off the exterior walls.

Naminé stared at him, her eyes blazing with anger and determination.

He noticed Kairi. "Kairi," he said pointedly. "I'm afraid leaving is not an option." He held out his hand, as if expecting one of them to run forward and take it. "I'll take you to see Sora," he said, watching her carefully.

Kairi took a step back and held up her arm as if to protect herself.

"You don't want that?" He did not sound surprised.

"I do," she said passionately, touching her hand to where her heart would be. "More than anything." She thought for a second. "But not with you around," she retorted angrily, lifting her arms in a kind of battle stance. Naminé copied her, looking determined.

Amusement flickered across Saïx's passive face. "If I had a heart, this would be where I die of laughter," he said smartly. He suddenly turned, hearing a soft clink from one of the Nobodies behind him. The creature froze and then fell forward, revealing a man in a black cloak holding a dark Keyblade.

"You…" hissed Saïx, his voice still toneless. "Didn't Roxas take care of you?"

Naminé straightened. "You can take it from here-" She hesitated. "Riku."

Kairi turned to her, stunned. "Riku?" She looked back at the man, her eyes wide with apprehension. Her eyes landed on the Keyblade in his hand, which promptly disappeared. He pulled back his hand and shot a ball of blue light at Saïx, who deflected it and jumped backwards. The man ran towards him and threw him into the wall. Saïx touched the wall with his hand and a dark portal appeared behind him; he grinned evilly and backed into it. The man started forward, but was interrupted by Kairi.

"Wait!" she exclaimed, running towards him. He froze, then back away slowly and looked down at her as she approached. "Riku…you're really here?" she asked softly, lifting her hands to his hood. She pushed it back and gasped; the man had tanned skin and snowy white hair: Ansem.

---

The foursome ran forward and encountered a very strange Nobody: it was thin and blue, and eight red laser cubes surrounded it. Sora jumped up to try to lash out at it, but found that the cubes had parried his attack. The creature summoned the cubes into two arm-like structures and whacked Sora a few times. Mischa held out her hand, and her Keyblade appeared; but it was a different blade. It was red and silver and both ends strongly resembled Axel's chakram.

"The Bond of Flame," said Axel's voice from inside her head. Warmth overcame her body and she grinned in spite of the current situation. She gripped it, more confident now, and jumped up through the boxes and struck the Nobody. It disappeared, taking its laser boxes with it.

Sora eyed the blade suspiciously. "Where did you get that?" he asked curiously.

She shrugged innocently, though she truly had no idea either. "Axel, I guess."

They ran up the ramp and along the platform until they reached a large doorway. Another unique Nobody appeared in their way; it floated around in midair, shooting red laser beams at the group. Donald raised his staff and shouted "Thunder!"; a bolt of lightning shot down from the sky and singed the creature. They then proceeded through the doorway.

This new room had only one floor, which was suddenly encompassed by a purple light.

"It's a wall," said Mischa, watching Goofy touch it uncertainly. "They want to keep us in here."

Two Nobodies suddenly appeared; they were tall and resembled red dragons, except that they were upright and carry some sort of lance.

Mischa watched the strange walls as Sora, Donald and Goofy fought the Nobodies. "It's an elevator!" she exclaimed, noticing the occasional white glow of a passing floor. The walls disappeared and they ran for the doorway that appeared, leaving the Nobodies behind.

The next room had glass floors, but they were in too much a hurry to be careful.

"Wow!" exclaimed Donald, looking around in wonder at the humongous interior of the castle. "This place looked big from the outside, but the inside is even bigger!"

"Yeah, it is," agreed Mischa, her voice laced with uncertainty. "Let's just…be careful, okay?"

Goofy shivered violently. "Golly, I feel darkness around us, but we haven't even see any members of Organization XIII."

Sora nodded as they ascended the large rounded stairwell. "Me too."

At the top, there was another room, which they entered with caution, expecting Nobodies to show up out of nowhere. Inside was a large, square floor; Mischa realized with a shiver that it was perfect for a battle.

"Be careful," she repeated warningly as they walked to the middle of the floor.

"Sora, you've done well," said a voice from above them. They all looked up to see Saïx standing on a platform far above.

"Where's Kairi?" he demanded. There was no roof to the room, and they had a full view of the heart-shaped moon in the black sky above them.

Saïx shrugged. "Who knows? I expect she's catching up with her friend from the darkness."

"What do you mean?" he asked, his voice on the edge of hysteria; Mischa patted his back in an attempt to calm him down.

Saïx pointed at him accusingly. "She doesn't need you anymore."

Sora stepped forward. "I'm supposed to believe that?" he asked smartly.

He shrugged again. "Well, you don't have to," he replied simply. "But you can believe this: Organization XIII has no further use for you." He pointed up to the moon in the sky. "Just look there, our Kingdom Hearts. Thanks to you, we've collected countless hearts. Can you hear their euphoria?" His voice suddenly became tense. "Now, all they need is one more helping from a Keyblade bearer!"

A Nobody with a large hammer appeared from the ground and grabbed Mischa from behind. Sora, Donald, and Goofy moved to free her, but at that moment, thousands of Nobodies and Heartless began appearing in the walls and the floor. She screamed as the creature pulled her down with it.

"Mischa!" shouted Sora, but it was too late: the creature had disappeared, and so had Saïx. "No!"

He proceeded to thrash about wildly, killing Nobodies, until he was so exhausted that he collapsed onto the ground.

---

The Nobody released Mischa once they had entered a white room.

"Not again," she groaned aloud, sinking to her knees. It had brought her back into the room where she had been before: the one with the large pod. She stared at her hands, thinking furiously, trying to figure out what to do.

"Welcome back, Mischa."

She looked up to see Saïx striding towards her. The Keyblade instinctively appeared in her hand as she stood up, staring at him defiantly.

"Before you say anything, I have a question," she stated boldly. He raised his eyebrows and looked at her expectantly.

"Why do I have this Keyblade?" she demanded, throwing it across the room; it slid over the white floor until it hit the wall, and then reappeared in her clenched fist.

"You wield the Keyblade," said Saïx slowly – a bit dramatically, Mischa thought – "because you are the Eighth Princess of Heart."

"The eighth what of _what_?" she sputtered, unable to believe what she was hearing.

"Princess of Heart," he replied, as if this should have been obvious. "Xemnas figured it out ages ago, when that fool Maleficent's plan failed. He realized that they had been missing one very important thing: you."

Her mouth hung open in astonishment. She was a princess. But, how? Her mother was a geisha – albeit very famous – and her father was a fisherman. Where did royalty fit in to her family tree?

Saïx smiled slightly, seeming to understand her thoughts. "It's not what you're thinking," he explained. You are a Princess of Heart by your heart, not by your family tree."

She furrowed her brow in confusion. "What is a Princess of Heart, exactly?"

"There are seven of them; well, it was believed to have been seven, according to the legends; but Xemnas was too smart for that. Maleficent, the woman who controls the Heartless, kidnapped all seven Princesses over a year ago to open the Door. You see, their hearts contain no darkness, and the power from their pure hearts opens the pathway that leads to the Door. She did not know, however, that Kairi was a princess as well, and when Sora reunited Kairi's heart with her body, the pathway had opened just as Xehanort – the human form of Xemnas – had intended it to. They tried it again this time, though, and found that a new pure heart had been born. Maleficent did not know who it was, but Xemnas figured it out by watching you, especially the fact that you could wield the Keyblade. That is why he sent Axel to kidnap you and bring you here; he knew that he would need your heart to unleash Kingdom Hearts."

Mischa nodded, letting the information sink in. "So…why is it _my _heart that you need, and not Sora's?"

He looked thoughtful, as if this idea had not occurred to him before; Mischa instantly regretted saying anything. "We could use Sora's, but we only need one." He then smiled wickedly at her. "And we realized it would be much easier to retrieve yours than Sora's."

Her eyes narrowed and her teeth clenched in anger. "You'll regret saying that," she warned, brandishing her Keyblade threateningly.

"Will I?" he asked in mock surprise. He looked around him exaggeratedly. "Hmm. No Axel here to save you this time, huh?"

She growled at his casual mention of Axel's name and leaped forward, attacking him furiously. A large claymore appeared in his hand and he whipped it upwards in an attempt to parry her attacks. The impact threw her backwards, but stopped herself by dragging her Keyblade across the floor. The monster from the hole in her chest roared and she ran forward, Axel's Keyblade glowing as she struck the claymore out of Saïx's hand. His eyes widened in astonishment as she lashed at him; the blow threw him into the pod. There was a small combustion, and as the dust cleared, Mischa was satisfied to see a black coat hidden under the pile of pod remnants.

"I told you so," she called over her shoulder as she walked confidently out of the room.

---

"Sora, stop!" shouted Donald fruitlessly. He jumped up and tried to hold Sora's arms behind his back as he tried to swing weakly at yet another Heartless.

"I…have to…Mischa…Kairi…" he muttered in between swings.

Goofy shook his head. "I don't think that's a good idea, Sora, especially with Kingdom Hearts bein' as big as it is."

This seemed to stop him for the moment. He sighed and looked up at the eerie moon.

"Sora!" A female voice shouted his name from somewhere high above. "Sora, it's really you!"

Sora looked up to find that it was Kairi, leaning over the edge of a platform to better see him. His heart filled with joy upon seeing her.

"Kairi!" he exclaimed; but was then knocked over by some stray Heartless.

She gasped. "You leave Sora alone!" she reprimanded childishly. She backed up to the doorway, then ran forward and jumped over the edge. She spread out her arms in the shape of a cross and floated down, landing gracefully on the platform below. A few Heartless were there to greet her and jumped on her, knocking her over. "Sora," she muttered, trying to fight them off.

She was suddenly encompassed in white light and then found herself standing upright, being presented with a flowery Keyblade by Riku.

"Take it," he directed in his deep voice that was so unlike his real one. She nodded and accepted it carefully, then waved it back.

"This time, _I'll_ fight," she declared. She smiled. "You know Sora's completely hopeless without us. C'mon, Riku!"

She ran forward, swiping at the small black Heartless creatures. Riku watched her with amusement, and then brandished his own Keyblade and ran after her.

---

King Mickey hurriedly ascended an exterior stairway on the castle, lashing at the various Heartless that appeared with his golden Keyblade. As he neared the top, he noticed a limp figure on the ground, surrounded by Nobodies, and ran over to help. The man wore red and black robes and his face was completely obscured by red bandages but for his eyes and mouth; lying next to him was a strange machine with some kind of glass ball. He stood up weakly, grabbing His Majesty for support. He nodded to convey that he could handle it and stood up, reaching behind his head to untie the bandages.

"It's been too long, my friend," said the man, who had yellow-blond hair and mustache and wise-looking red eyes.

"Ansem the Wise," said King Mickey, pointing at him with his eyes narrowed. "Why didn't you come to me before things got so bad?" he demanded.

"Xemnas, the Organization's Superior, is the Nobody of Xehanort, my foremost apprentice," he replied sagely. "The burden was mine to bear."

"Is that all?" His Majesty asked, looking surprised.

Ansem walked towards the edge of the platform and looked out before him. "I won't deny there was more," he said evasively. "I was…obsessed with thoughts of revenge." He closed his eyes. "My apprentices stole everything precious to me: my research, and my pride." He opened his eyes, which were angry and resentful.

King Mickey walked forward, looking concerned; Ansem looked down at him from the corner of his eye. "I can't help you with revenge," he said.

"I know," sighed Ansem. "Riku's told me a thousand times."

King Mickey looked around curiously. "Where is he?"

"He must be with his friends by now," replied Ansem quietly. "Riku was a great help to me." He turned to look at Mickey. "I found him wandering the darkness, after you and he lost track of each other.

"Gosh," said Mickey, looking a little abashed, "we didn't lose each other exactly. Riku left…well, 'cause Xehanort's Heartless was still inside his heart, troubling him. And he sure must've been suffering." He paused, thinking. "But what I don't understand is why he looks like that now, when he's still Riku at heart."

"I am to blame," he admitted. He nodded, seeming to agree with himself on something. "When I met Riku the first time, he still had the appearance of a boy. Probably because he had such a strong heart." He turned away from Mickey. "I asked him to find a young man named Roxas from Organization XIII, and bring him to me. When I told him it would help Sora awaken from his slumber, Riku left without a word." A pause. "He fought Roxas. And I can only surmise that Riku lost that fight. Riku must have realized then: to fight in the realm of darkness, he would have to immerse himself in that same darkness. And when he did…you saw what became of him." Another pause. "When Riku brought Roxas back to me, he was introducing himself…as Ansem. If that was what it took to awaken his friend, he was ready to live in the darkness. Riku was the victim of my revenge." He bowed his head sadly. "Oh, how my heart ached. I could only laugh, to hide my shame."

King Mickey did not answer at first. "I guess it musta been after that when I saw Riku again," he said finally. "He said he wanted to help Sora, but he made me promise – promise that Sora wouldn't ever find out about what happened to him when he was out in the darkness."

Ansem looked up and then back down at Mickey with a slight smile. "My friend, the time has come. I must make amends to these young people." He walked over to his strange machine and picked it up. King Mickey joined him and walked with him into the doorway, his hand on the machine.

---

"Get off!" grunted Sora under the weight of the Heartless creatures. He was surprised; though they lacked a heart, the creatures were heavier than they appeared.

He stood up and pushed them off, looking up to see Kairi fighting with a Keyblade. He almost laughed at the sight of her, trying her hardest to fight with a flowery Keyblade. He was then shocked to find her fighting alongside Ansem, the man he, Donald, and Goofy had defeated over a year ago.

"What's going on?" he demanded, directing the question towards Ansem. He heard quick footsteps behind him and turned around to see Mischa jogging towards them from the doorway, holding her fiery Keyblade over her shoulder.

"Mischa!" he exclaimed, his anxiety melting at the sight of her. "Where did you go? Are you okay?"

She stopped in front of the threesome and grinned. "Saïx captured me, but I took care of him. Did you know that I'm a princess?"

"Really?" asked Goofy. "That's so excitin'-"

"Whaddya mean, you took care of him?" interjected Donald suspiciously.

She laughed. "Oh, you know me. I have my ways."

Suddenly, a shot of red laser zoomed past them and singed the nearest Heartless. Then, a shower of red lasers appeared, knocking out every Heartless that surrounded them.

"Have you been a good boy?" asked a voice from above them. Mischa looked up in shock, expecting to see Saïx, but there was no one there.

"Show yourself!" demanded Sora impatiently.

They jumped as he appeared behind them from a black warp hole. It was another member of Organization XIII; he had brown-and-gray hair pulled back into a low braid and wore an eye patch over his left eye. His exposed eye was yellow, and below it was a wavy scar running down to his jaw line. It was Xigbar.

"Oh, it sounds like you haven't," said Xigbar, shaking his head dismally. He narrowed his eyes. "Sora! Roxas!"

"Roxas?" echoed Sora, looking at Mischa; she shrugged. "Er…this is Mischa."

Xigbar stared at her, his good eye looking resentful. "Oh yes, Mischa," he said pointedly, his voice high and musky. "We had quite a bit of trouble trying to convince Axel to take care of you the _right_ way." He winked. "If you know what I mean."

She growled and started towards him, but Sora held out his arm to stop her. "Hold on," he said to Xigbar. "What do you mean, 'Roxas'?"

"You've really put Organization XIII in a pickle," he replied, not answering the question. "I guess that must be why the Keyblade chose you." He grinned a little. "But _man_, did it pick a dud this time. You don't look like half the hero the others were."

Sora groaned. "Are you done rambling?" he asked impatiently.

Xigbar looked slightly surprised. "Rambling? As if! All I'm trying to tell you, traitor, is that your time is up!" He threw each of his hands up and shooting katar weapons appeared; he readied them and glared down at them.

"Here he comes!" said Goofy worriedly. Xigbar jumped down onto the floor that they were standing on and smirked at them.

"You really shouldn't have betrayed us," he said knowingly. He then spun his katars around, locked them together, and then teleported to a higher platform. "Gotcha now!" he shouted. He aimed his shot at Sora, who warped away from each of his targets.

"Clever little sneak!" Xigbar muttered darkly, then teleported back down to their level. Sora and Mischa jumped out of the way as he aimed a shower of red laser beams at them.

"He's using gravity," Mischa muttered to Sora, "to levitate and teleport."

"Very clever, missy," Xigbar said from behind her; she whipped around and struck him with Axel's Keyblade. Sora jumped up and attacked him, but was thrown back by a barrage of red lasers.

"He's really tough," mumbled Sora. Suddenly, they were transported to a very small floor, where Xigbar floated in the middle above them. He lifted his hands and sent thousands of red beams from above him.

"RUN!" shouted Goofy, holding his shield over his head. They scrambled around the tiny block, blocking the beams with their respective weapons.

They appeared back on the main floor, and Sora ran over to Xigbar and struck him; he appeared back on the ground and dropped his guns in defeat. They clattered to the ground as he sank to the ground, his body fading similarly to Axel.

"I lost?" he muttered to himself, shaking his head unbelievingly. "Me?"

Sora walked over to him, flanked by Mischa, Donald, and Goofy. "Why did you call me Roxas?" he demanded.

Xigbar looked up at him, resentment in his yellow eye. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

"Hey, hold on!" said Sora, but he had disappeared.

"Sora!" exclaimed Donald, pointing to a platform above them. "It's Kairi!"

---

A few platforms above, Ansem the Wise and King Mickey walked out of the doorway and stood at the edge, watching Kairi and Ansem fight numerous Heartless.

"Uh oh," said His Majesty worriedly. "They need our help."

Ansem the Wise shook his head. "Sora and Riku are together. We have no part to play here."

His Majesty looked at Ansem with concern. "Gee, I wonder if Riku will ever change back…"

"Riku chose that form so he could use the power of darkness," he answered. "It won't be easy."

The two kings then turned around and walked back into the shadows.

---

Outside, Xemnas stood on an empty tier, staring up at the heart-shaped moon. Thousands of tiny hearts floated up to it from the room below him.

"Yes…" he mumbled. "Kingdom Hearts…Rejoice, and feast upon these hearts we offer! Shine your pale light upon this empty realm…Share you power with all Nobodies!"

As he lifted his arms to the moon, Saïx appeared from a dark warp hole behind him.

"Xemnas," he said shortly. "Is Kingdom Hearts ready?"

"Very soon," replied Xemnas, his eyes closed.

"Then, can I end this charade?" asked Saïx hopefully.

"Indeed."

Saïx smiled. "How I've waited to hear that."

* * *

Author's Note: A lot of this is basically the game, but with Mischa in it. So yeah.


	16. Look After You

Author's Note: Second-to-last chapter!

* * *

The foursome hurried through the doorway out of the battle hall and ran up the tiers of the exterior skyway. Upon entering the doorway at the top, Sora was pleased to see Kairi directly in front of him, trying her hardest to fight the last Heartless.

Donald ran forward. "Kairi, you were great!" he exclaimed.

"Oh?" replied Kairi, turning. She blushed and bashfully flipped her red hair back. Sora slowly walked over to her, taking in her appearance.

"You are different, Kairi," he commented, "but I'm just glad you're here!"

"You and Riku never came home," she replied easily. "So, I went looking for you."

Sora bowed his head. "I'm sorry," he admitted sadly. Much to his surprise, Kairi rushed forward and hugged him.

"This is real…" she murmured. He, coming back to his senses, eagerly placed his hands on her back.

Mischa looked away from the scene. How wonderful for Sora to be reunited with his friend! The hole in her chest began to tremble, but she kept her emotions carefully under wraps.

Goofy noticed this and patted her on the back. "Don't worry, Mischa," he said encouragingly. "It'll all turn out okay."

She nodded, biting her lip to fight back the tears. She would have her parents back soon, that was something to look forward to. But she would never see Axel again; or, at least, not in this lifetime. How was that fair? To have one, but not the other?

Her thoughts were once again interrupted by Sora. The man who had been fighting alongside Kairi had started to walk into a dark portal, when Sora shouted to him to stop.

"Wait, Ansem! I mean, Xehanort's Heartless…"

Ansem paused in his tracks, and the portal vanished. Sora walked over to him until he was a few feet away.

"I never thought for a second that I'd ever see _you_ again," he said honestly, seeming to choose his words carefully. "Just thinking about all the things you did makes me really mad. But…" he paused for a second, thinking. "But, you saved Kairi, right? I have to be grateful for that…Thanks."

Ansem said nothing; he began to walk away, but Kairi ran over to him.

"Riku, don't go!" she protested, holding his arm.

Donald and Goofy jumped in alarm; Sora's eyes were wide. "Kairi, what did you say?" he asked.

"Riku."

"I'm no one," muttered Ansem. "Just a castaway from the darkness."

Kairi shook her head dismally. "Sora, come here. Say something to him."

He obeyed, and Kairi took his hand. "Here," she said, taking Ansem's as well. "You'll understand. Close your eyes."

Sora closed his eyes as Ansem watched him. Mischa watching the touching scene with a pang of remorse. She should never had allowed Axel to perform that suicide attack; she should have stayed and fought and let Sora go on ahead without her. It was all her fault; if she had just stayed and fought, Axel would…

"Forget me," said his voice in her ear. "It's the only way."

"I can't," she moaned; Goofy's ears pricked up in surprise. "I don't want to."

She suddenly heard Sora gasp. "Riku…" he exclaimed weakly, falling to his knees. "It's Riku…Riku's here…" Tears began rolling down his face. "I looked for you!"

"C'mon, Sora," said Ansem disapproving, who was apparently Riku. "You've got to pull it together."

"I looked everywhere for you!"

"I didn't want you to find me," he replied simply.

"But it was him that was helpin' us, wasn't it?" said Goofy suddenly. Donald looked at him, surprised.

"Huh?"

"Those clues we kept findin'," answered Goofy relevantly. "That musta been Riku."

Riku smiled a little. "I was starting to worry you guys weren't ever going to catch on. Sora never did pick the brightest friends."

"What do you mean by that?" asked Donald indignantly.

Sora ignored him. "Why didn't you let me know you were okay?"

"I told you," said Riku simply. "I didn't want to be found. Not like this…" He looked at himself disdainfully. "I couldn't. I fought with Ansem – with Xehanort's Heartless. When it invaded my heart, and I won. But to use the power of darkness, I had to become Ansem myself."

Kairi looked at him with concern. "Does that mean…you can't change back?"

Riku narrowed his eyes determinedly. "This battle isn't over. And until it is, I still need the power of darkness."

Sora stood up. "Then…let's finish it," he said resolutely. "You're still Riku, no matter what!"

Mischa nodded with Kairi, Donald, and Goofy. Sora turned to them.

"So, how about it: Think we can handle one last rumble together? The King's waiting!"

"Yeah!" exclaimed Donald excitedly. "Let's get going!"

---

Ansem the Wise and King Mickey walked outside, both their eyes locked on the moon. Ansem carried his strange machine to the edge and placed it carefully on the ground.

"This spot should do," he said calmly. His Majesty watched him uncertainly.

"What's this gadget for?" he asked curiously.

"It's a device to reclaim Kingdom Hearts and encode it as data."

Mickey hummed dubiously. "Not sure I get it."

Ansem laughed weakly. "I do not claim to know the outcome of this venture, either. After all…Hearts are unpredictable." He flipped a switch on the machine and it shot out a long silver beam at the moon.

---

Mischa followed the others into a strange, eerie room. There were three small floors with broken doorways and glowing patterns on the floor beneath each doorway. At the top of the room was a large, round doorway that Mischa surmised to be some sort of portal.

She noticed that three of the doorways were not broken, and decided to count: there were twelve, thirteen including the large portal at the top. A chill ran down her body and she shivered violently.

"It looks like a graveyard," said Kairi quietly, voicing Mischa's thoughts.

"Proof of Existence," murmured Riku.

Unconsciously, she walked forward, to the broken doorway on the left most lowest tier. She looked down at the grave marker, which was a depiction of two chakram. "The Flurry of Dancing Flames," it read near the top of the picture.

A wet sob escaped her lips before she could stop herself. She vaguely heard Sora whispering a quick summary of the story to Riku and Kairi and felt Goofy's reassuring pat on her shoulder. Riku said something, and then she heard him walk over to her. She turned slowly to look at him; he looked at her sternly – they were about the same height, she being nineteen and he being seventeen – but his eyes were understanding.

"I know you don't want to hear it," he said quietly, "but you're really better off this way." He gestured to the broken doorway. "They're not a good crowd to get involved with, believe me."

She nodded numbly, feeling the hole in her heart beginning to sew itself together at his words. "Forget me," his voice said for the last time; she could hear it fading away.

Kairi, who had come up behind her and wrapped her arms around her, jerked her out of her reverie. "Don't worry, Mischa," she mumbled into Mischa's dress. "You'll be fine."

Mischa laughed in spite of herself. "You're right, you're totally right," she said quickly; Kairi released her, looking satisfied. "Let's go kick some Nobody butt!"

She followed the others into the first doorway, two graves down from Axel's grave.

The room looked a bit like an amphitheater: tiered steps leading down to nowhere. There was a clear view of the moon, which had a strange silver beam connected to it.

"What's that?" asked Sora, pointing to the beam. Riku scrutinized it.

"It's the King and DiZ…I mean, Ansem the Wise. They must be higher up. We'd better hurry up."

Sora nodded. They turned to leave the room, when suddenly a man in a black cloak appeared. He had short yellow-blond hair and two earrings on one ear, a light mustache and connecting goatee, and his eyes were blue and scheming: Luxord. He snapped his fingers, and five cards appeared, covering Mischa, Kairi, Riku, Donald, and Goofy. He snapped again, and the cards spun around them; and then they flew away, taking Sora's companions with them.

Sora turned to Luxord, shocked. "You!" he shouted, pointing at him accusingly.

Luxord dismissed Sora's accusation with a wave of his hand. "I'd rather we skipped the formalities. The first to run out of time is the loser."

Life-sized cards appeared around Sora and he looked at each of them in bewilderment. He ran forward and attacked the one with Luxord's picture on it. He heard him groan and then he appeared behind the cards. Sora ran through them, his Keyblade at the ready. But, as he broke through them, new cards appeared; he again ran to the one with Luxord's picture.

After a few more moments of this game, Luxord finally ran out of time. The cards disappeared, and he stood still, looking at Sora curiously.

"You play the game quite well," he commented.

Sora narrowed his eyes and ran forward; Luxord surrounded himself with cards, but Sora raised his Keyblade and slashed them in half, striking Luxord.

"How could you…Roxas…"he mumbled, sinking to his knees.

"That's _Sora_!" he retorted angrily. Luxord kept his blue eyes on him as he faded away into darkness.

The cards flew back down, and Mischa, Riku, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy appeared, looking slightly disheveled. Kairi came over to Sora.

"You okay?" she asked with concern.

Sora nodded. "Yeah! No worries. Let's keep going."

The group hurried back into the grave room. Riku paused.

"I can sense Saïx," he said slowly; the others turned to look at him. Sora and Mischa exchanged meaningful glances. "He's using something to boost his power. If we can figure out his power source, we may be able to use it, too."

As they walked through the other unbroken doorway, Sora noticed Mischa's worried expression. "Maybe he just got away," he said optimistically.

"I thought I took care of him, though," she said angrily, but she was angry with herself, not Sora. "I threw him into a pod; how did he survive?"

"The power source," Sora reminded her. "Whatever he's using, it must have brought him his strength back."

She nodded, unconvinced. As they walked into the room, Saïx was standing at the far opposite of the doorway, looking up through a huge window at the moon. He turned and smiled as they entered.

"Mischa, my dear; come back for a rematch?" he asked softly.

Mischa growled and tightened the grip on her Keyblade. Saïx turned his attention to Sora.

"Only you could have made it this far in one piece…Roxas," he said mysteriously. A large claymore appeared in his hand.

Sora stepped forward angrily. "That's really getting old!" he shouted.

Donald and Goofy stood in front of him. "Yeah, he's Sora!" exclaimed Donald indignantly.

The claymore in Saïx's grip turned incredibly spiked. "Different name, same fate." He thrusted his claymore forward and a wave of vibration shot forward, towards the group. Riku ran to cover Kairi, and the wave sent them sliding forward. A barrier formed and they were trapped out of the fight.

Riku and Kairi watched as Sora, Mischa, Donald, and Goofy ferociously fought Saïx; Mischa looked most resentful of them all.

"Is there a reason why Mischa is so resentful of Saïx?" Riku muttered to Kairi.

She nodded. "Sora told me that Saïx kidnapped her parents three years ago and made it look like they were dead."

Riku nodded slowly. "I see."

"Do you feel it?" Saïx shouted. "Moon, shine down on me!"

Mischa ran forward, jumped up, and struck him hard; even Riku winced at the impact. Saïx fell to his knees.

"A heart…" he was muttering as Riku and Kairi walked over, the barrier now gone. "If I had a heart…" He dropped his claymore, which crashed to the floor, and he turned up to the window, his eyes on the moon. "Why…Kingdom Hearts? Where is my heart?"

They watched him weakly reach out to the moon as he faded away. There was silence for a moment.

"I don't get it," said Sora irritably. "Why does everybody keep calling me Roxas?"

Riku turned to him, a slight smile on his face. "Because, Sora: Roxas is your Nobody."

Mischa smiled and looked down at her feet to hide her face. Sora looked stunned. "My…Nobody? That's crazy, I never turned into a Heart……" his face lit up with dawning comprehension. "Oh, right."

"It was when you came to rescue me, remember?" added Kairi.

"Xemnas was the one who found Roxas," said Riku. "He could use the Keyblade because he was your Nobody. That's why Xemnas brought him into the Organization…but Roxas betrayed them. After that, I fought him because I thought it would you wake up. I lost, but the next time I made sure I was the stronger one. Maybe I didn't need to fight him at all. I think he left the Organization because…he really wanted to meet you, Sora."

Sora considered this. "Roxas," he murmured. "I wish I could meet him, too."

Riku walked closer to Sora and pointed to his chest, where he heart would be. Sora realized his message and nodded.

"All right," said Riku, breaking the short silence. "Let's go." He led the way back into the grave room and noticed that the pathway at the top had opened. They walked up to it, and the first thing they saw when they emerged from the portal was that the beam connecting to the moon was beginning to weaken. The machine it was coming from had begun to shake, being held by DiZ. He had removed his wraps, exposing his face: he looked old and wise, with yellow-blond hair and searching red eyes.

The King looked concerned. "Ansem?" he said tentatively to the man.

Ansem laughed. "I'm a fool," he admitted. "I've spent years studying the workings of the heart. Yet it seems I haven't learned a thing!"

"What d'ya mean?" asked Mickey.

"The process of encoding hearts is incalculable," he answered. "The inhabitants of my Twilight Town were data created from real hearts. I was convinced that they would think and behave the way I had envisioned – but I couldn't have been more wrong. A heart is so much more than any system. I saw it when Roxas and Kairi crossed paths. I knew. But I was too stubborn to accept it. It's always the same. I try to wrap my mind around things my heart already knows, only to fail. While I was trying to bring Sora back, I had so many plans in store. But once Sora was an acting force, they fell apart. All my research amounted to nothing, compared with that one boy's heart."

The device began to short-circuit dangerously.

"Ansem!" shouted Mickey worriedly. "The machine!"

"All the more proof that hearts cannot be contained by data," said Ansem calmly. He turned to Mickey. "Run, my friend! It's going to self-destruct, and anything can happen!"

"But…" His Majesty protested.

"Your Majesty!" shouted Sora, running towards him; his group followed close behind. Ansem looked at Sora.

"Sora…the rest is up to…" he said weakly. "And Roxas – I doubt you can hear me, but…I am sorry."

"Ansem!" the King shouted, starting to run towards him. Riku grabbed his arm to hold him back. "Riku!"

"His heart's decided," said Riku flatly. "We can't change that."

Ansem looked at Mischa next. "And Mischa, my dear. I am sorry, as well. Nothing I had discovered could have protected you from the Organization, I now see."

Suddenly, Xemnas appeared out of a dark warp hole.

"I was wondering who would dare interfere with my Kingdom Hearts," he said, looking at each of them. "And look – here you all are. How convenient for me. Ansem the Wise…you look pathetic."

Ansem's eyes narrowed with hatred at the sight of him. "Have your laugh," he said bitterly. "I deserve as much for failing to see you for the fool you are."

"Students do take after their teachers," he replied. "Only a fool would be your apprentice. After all, none of this would have happened without you. _You_ are the source of all Heartless. It was your research that inspired me to go farther than you ever dared."

"I admit…my disregard brought chaos to more worlds than one. But what were _you_ seeking? You erased me from the world, only to take my name and continue research better left forgotten…Is this the answer you've been searching for?"

Xemnas smiled a little. "All that and more. I'm carrying on what you yourself began, and I'm creating a brand new world, one heart at a time. I thought you'd praise me, but all you ever do it hold me back. I understand, though. Unlike me, you have a heart. And you're powerless to control it. Consumed, by the jealousy you feel towards the student who surpassed you."

Ansem sighed. "Xehanort. Foolish apprentice of a foolish man. You have surpassed nothing – only proved how little we both know. We may profess to know the heart, but its essence is beyond our reach. We're both ignorant – as oblivious as when we began. I'm afraid that any world you try to create... Any world of yours...would be an empire of ignorance. That is why you and your creation are destined to fall!"

Bolts of electricity surged through and around the machine. Ansem noticed this and spoke.

"We've said enough!" he shouted. He looked at Riku. "Riku, you know what to do! King Mickey, my friend, forgive me! Farewell!"

The machine sparked and exploded. Sora tried to run for Ansem, but Riku held him back. A light flashed, and the group was pulled back into a giant swirling tunnel. Millions of hearts fell around the castle. They woke up on the floor, and Sora noticed that Riku had changed. He had long silver hair, and was blindfolded.

"Riku?" asked Sora, as Riku got up. "Riku!"

"Wow!" exclaimed Donald, Goofy, and Mischa in unison.

"Ansem did say 'anything could happen'…" said Mickey thoughtfully.

Riku looked straight ahead. "You gonna take that off?" asked Sora.

"Oh," said Riku, lifting his hands up and untying the blindfold. His cerulean blue eyes finally opened.

"What was that?" Sora wanted to know.

"His eyes couldn't lie," murmured King Mickey.

"Lie?" echoed Sora, turning to Riku. "And just who were you trying to fool, huh?"

"Myself," he responded simply.

"Riku, c'mon man!" said Sora. "Why did you try to do so much on your own?" He gestured to the rest of the group. "You've got friends, like us!"

Riku looked slowly at each of them. His gaze lingered on Mischa. "Have you forgotten?" he said, looking back at Sora with a smirk. "I'll tell you why. 'Cause I'm not a total sap like you."

Sora looked affronted. "Say that again!" he retorted in mock indignation.

They then noticed the moon: thousands of hearts were flooding into it, and it was beginning to take on a darker look, as if it was infected.

"Uh, oh!" shouted Donald.

"What should we do, Riku?" asked Sora.

Riku stared at the moon, thinking. "We must defeat Xemnas," he said finally. "He's the Organization's last survivor."

"Right!" agreed Sora. Riku whipped off his black coat and revealed the outfit of a teenage boy.

"Sora," said Mischa quietly, her blue eyes downcast. He turned expectantly to her. "I…I think I should stay behind."

"Why?" protested Sora. "You have to come with us!"

She shook her head. "I'm sorry, but I need to find my parents. That's what's most important to me right now."

Sora considered this and nodded. He walked over to her and gave her a bone-crushing hug. She laughed.

"Sora, I never realized how short you are!" she joked, examining their inches-difference in height. "I'll miss you guys," she said once Sora had let her go. She hugged Donald and Goofy in turn. "All of you," she added to Riku, Kairi, and the King.

"It was great meeting you!" exclaimed Kairi. Riku simply nodded at her, and she understood. The King walked over to her and shook her hand vigorously. "Be careful," he warned. She nodded, and then turned to walk back into the grave room, waving goodbye to her new friends.

* * *

Author's Note: I felt bad about making her leave, but how else was I going to end it? Lol. Last chapter up next.


	17. Beautiful World

Author's Note: (dumroll) dun-dun-dun-dun, here's the last chapter!

* * *

Mischa leaped down from the top tier and stopped at the bottom, her eyes straying to Axel's grave. Giving in to herself, she walked slowly, taking in the appearance.

The doorway had been broken beyond repair, just like him. _"I wish I could say that I love you, Misch," _he had said_. "But, under the circumstances, I guess the most I can give you is that you make me feel like I actually have a heart."_ She sniffed back tears as she realized that she would soon be going back home to Yoroido, and Axel would not be visiting her every day.

The hole was closed, however; she could feel the monster inside her chest going to sleep, sleeping inside her pure heart. There were no more ifs, ands, or buts; there were no more should'ves, would'ves, or could'ves. He was gone, and she was going to live on. She would see him soon, when she had completely lived out her life and was ready to find him in the afterlife. He would be there, she knew; he would be waiting there in the meadow, waiting to whisk her away forever.

Time did not pass very quickly in this place, she found as she turned around to walk back into the castle. She ran down each of the exterior platforms that she, Sora, Donald, and Goofy had run up not long ago. As she ran, she felt weightless: she felt like she could fly, like she could do anything.

Until, that is, Heartless began rapidly appearing. The battle was not over, and Mischa vowed to aid Sora in any way that she could.

She hurried forward, slashing at each Heartless angrily with her Keyblade. She pictured each one as a moment of heartache she had experienced. Each little, blinking yellow eye was a single tear she had shed, a single sharp breath she had taken in order to keep her emotions under control. There were hundreds of them, it seemed, but she kept moving, kept killing. She needed to find her parents.

The room they had battled Xigbar in looked strangely smaller, what with all the Heartless crowding the available space. She ran through them, screaming bloody murder as she struck them wildly, giving them no mercy. Her voice echoed off of the high ceiling, and she could see the moon above growing darker and darker.

She found the door she had come through earlier and ran down into it, down the stairwell and through the white hallways. There were still Heartless here; she pointed her Keyblade ahead and a red light burst out of it, singeing the Heartless in front of her so that she could run faster.

Suddenly, she found it: the room with the pod. Or, at least, what was left of the pod. The pile of remnants looked untouched, despite the fact that Saïx had been buried beneath it only recently. She turned towards the white wall that Saïx had turned, which held the pod containing her parents.

Mischa held up her Keyblade to the wall; the tip turned bright red, and an orb of red light floated to the wall. A square shape illuminated, and the wall slowly turned. Her heart rose with anticipation as the pod appeared, filled with some sort of steam. A layer of the pod opened near the bottom, and the steam billowed out, blocking her view momentarily. As the smoke cleared, she held her breath…but the pod was empty.

Her lungs froze in her chest. "No," she mumbled, rubbing her eyes as if this were only an illusion. "No, it can't be…where – ?"

She suddenly realized that she was alone in the castle; there was no one here to help her find them. She backed away from the pod slowly, and then ran out of the room, screaming.

Every room in the castle was empty but for the Heartless, she found. She explored the hallways, finally ending up at the bridge to the town.

A sudden thought struck her like a lightning bolt. What if Sora had succeeded, and Yoroido was back? Would her parents have been sent back to the world they came from? But, if so, why hadn't she been sent back as well? She decided to give it a shot.

The streets were somehow darker and spookier, though there were no Heartless here. The only light, now that the moon was weakening, came from the neon lights from the buildings above. She hurried through the town, eager to escape this world as soon as possible. As she turned a last corner, she was relieved to find the Gummi Ship parked there. The door opened for her as she approached.

She was not used to being inside the ship alone. When her back had been injured, Axel had been there to comfort her. When they traveled, Sora, Donald, and Goofy were always there, seated in their respective orange chairs. Mischa took Sora's seat, examining all of the buttons on the dashboard.

It was easy enough to get moving; she had watched Sora and Goofy do it a few times. She felt the engine rumble beneath her, and saw the town begin to move downwards as the ship began to lift. She pulled back on the steering wheel, making the ship ascend farther, until she could no longer see the town or the castle. She sailed past the eerie moon, and out of the world's orbit and into space.

This was a problem. She had no idea what any of the worlds were, with the exception of Hollow Bastion. With a jolt she realized that she should go visit Hollow Bastion again and see Leon, Aerith, and Yuffie. She directed the ship towards the planet, slammed her fist down onto the green button, and held onto her chair tightly as the ship zoomed off.

---

Sora and Riku found themselves on a dark beach after defeating Xemnas, once and for all. Riku was weak after the battle; he fell to the ground.

"Sora…I can't..." he mumbled.

"Don't say another word!" said Sora resolutely. "It isn't over. It's just not." He put Riku's arm over his shoulder and helped he stand up.

"How can you even say that?" he retorted, looking around. "Even if we could go on…look at where we are."

"Aw, c'mon, Riku. You've been hanging out in the darkness for too long. You gotta think positive!"

Riku laughed weakly. "Sora?"

"Hm?"

"You lead."

Sora grinned. "Got it."

They walked forward, without any preset destination; just walking anywhere in a land of nothingness.

"You know," began Riku thoughtfully. "I always figured I was better at stuff than you were."

Sora raised his eyebrows. "Really?"

"Are you mad?"

Sora considered. "No. I kinda always thought you were better at everything, too." He looked ahead, out past the dark waves of the black water. "Riku, look. What's that light?"

"End of the road?" asked Riku.

"Yep."

"Put me down," he said. "I can walk." Sora removed his arm carefully and walked to the water.

"You know, maybe the darkness has gotten to me, too," he commented. Riku sat down on the beach and lay back. Sora turned and ran back to him.

"This world is perfect for me," he said, looking around. "If this is what the world really is…then maybe I should fade back into darkness."

"Riku…"

"If the world is made of light and darkness…we'll be the darkness."

"Yeah," agreed Sora. "The other side…the realm of light is safe now. Kairi, the King, Mischa, are all safe."

"That's what I mean. Hey, Sora…can you help me? I want to get down to the water."

Sora nodded and helped Riku stand up. "At least the waves sound the same," Riku commented sourly.

Neither said anything for a few moments.

"What I said back there," began Riku quietly, "about thinking I was better at stuff than you…to tell you the truth, Sora…I was jealous of you."

"What for?" asked Sora, surprised.

"I wish I could live life the way you do: just following my heart."

Sora thought for a moment. "Yeah, well, I've got my share of problems, too."

Riku looked at him. "Like what?"

"Like…wanting to be like you."

Riku laughed lightly. "Well, there is one advantage to being me…something you could never imitate."

"Really? What's that?" asked Sora curiously.

"Having you for a friend."

Sora smiled. "Then I guess…I'm okay with who I am. I've got something you could never imitate, too."

They looked up at the starless sky, feeling the breeze on their skin and hearing the crash of the waves. A bottle suddenly washed up between Riku's legs and he picked it up. He opened it and read the note inside.

"Sora? I think it's for you," he said, handing the bottle to Sora.

"'Thinking of you, wherever you are'," he read. "'We pray for our sorrows to end, and hope that our hearts will blend. Now, I will step forward to realize this wish. And who knows: starting a new journey may not be so hard, or maybe it has already begun. There are many worlds, but they share the same sky – one sky, one destiny'."

The light on the horizon suddenly began glowing brightly.

"Light," said Riku.

"The door to light," said Sora in awe. He stood up and offered his hand to Riku. "We'll go together."

"Yeah."

They walked together into the light. They arrived on the Destiny Islands through shooting stars, surfacing from underwater.

"Sora! Riku!" came Kairi's voice from the beach. Sora and Riku swam to shore; Donald and Goofy ran past Kairi and jumped onto Sora, knocking him back into the water. As he sat up, Goofy hugged him and Donald wiped his eyes. King Mickey ran over to Riku, who picked him up and spun him around in joy. Kairi smiled and giggled at the strange scene. Sora reached into his pocket, took out her Oathkeeper keychain, and held it out to her.

"We're back," he said.

She held out her hand and smiled. "You're home."

---

On the way to Hollow Bastion, Mischa suddenly decided to change course. This was a time for rejoicing, and not for her to crash their party. She turned the ship south and sailed onwards, keeping a sharp eye for her world.

Suddenly, it loomed into view. She gazed at it in wonder, its blue ocean and green town. Without further ado, she slammed her fist down on the green button again and zoomed through her planet's atmosphere.

Yoroido had not changed at all; there were still the small cottages by the beach, the bustling town in the distance. She exited the ship, which, she was surprised to find, had disappeared once she set foot on the sandy ground. The villagers were back, walking and talking just as they used to. She ran up the road leading to her home, her peaceful-looking cottage, and opened the door.

There were voices inside, echoing off of the walls from the kitchen. She walked forward slowly, wondering who it could possibly be. As she entered the kitchen, she gasped in astonishment.

There, at the kitchen table, looking perfectly normal as if nothing had ever happened, were her mother and father.

---

_And so the story goes. An adventure like no other, with a happy, happy ending._

_Sometimes I wonder, as I sit here writing this years and years later, if I'll ever be able to see those friends of mine again. I know we're not supposed to; that the gateways to each world are meant to permanently remain closed off, but I can't help but hope. Hope, and wish upon every star that appears on the night sky._

_I know I will see Axel someday, too. When my life fulfills its purpose, and when I've finished living, he'll be there, waiting for me in the meadow. And we can be together forever; with or without hearts._

_As my story draws to a close, I want you to remember this: Trust what you can remember, and seek what you forget._

_---_

Hello, world.  
I hope you're listening.  
Forgive me if I'm young, for speaking out of turn;  
There's someone I've been missing.  
I think that they could be the better half of me.  
They're in the wrong place trying to make it right,  
But I'm tired of justifying.  
So I say you'll

Come home, come home;  
Cause I've been waiting for you  
For so long, for so long.  
And right now there's a war between the vanities,  
But all I see is you and me.  
The fight for you is all I've ever known,  
So come home.  
Oh.

I get lost in the beauty of everything I see.  
The world ain't as half as bad as they paint it to be.  
If all the sons,  
If all the daughters,  
Stopped to take it in;  
Well, hopefully the hate subsides and the love can begin.  
It might start now...yeah.  
Well, maybe I'm just dreaming out loud.

Until then,  
Come home, come home;  
Cause I've been waiting for you  
For so long for so long.  
And right now there's a war between the vanities,  
But all I see is you and me.  
The fight for you is all I've ever known, ever known.  
So, come home.  
Oh.

Everything I can't be  
Is everything you should be;  
And that's why I need you here.  
Everything I can't be  
Is everything you should be;  
And that's why I need you here.  
So, hear this now:

Come home, come home;  
Cause I've been waiting for you  
For so long, for so long.  
And right now there's a war between the vanities,  
But all I see is you and me.  
The fight for you is all I've ever known, ever known.  
So come home, come home.

* * *

Author's Note: So that's a wrap. I don't know if I like the ending very much anymore, so we'll see. As for now, au revoir!

Btw- song is "Come Home" by OneRepublic

*UPDATE* I decided to come back and give all the chapters coolio names. :) So, I picked out a song for each chapter:

1) The Opening Departure - Aiden

2) Human - The Killers

3) Flightless Bird, American Mouth - Iron & Wine

4) Day Of Rain - Thriving Ivory

5) Lazarus - Porcupine Tree

6) I Caught Myself - Paramore

7) New Divide - Linkin Park

8) Long Division - Death Cab For Cutie

9) Goodbye, Apathy - OneRepublic

10) Always Be - Jimmy Eat World

11) Stars and Boulevards - Augustana

12) Say (All I Need) - OneRepublic

13) Sympathy - Goo Goo Dolls

14) Fade Into You - Mazzy Star

15) Walk On- U2

16) Look After You - The Fray

17) Beautiful World - Take That

Additionally, the title of the story comes from the song "Box Full o' Honey" by Duran Duran. :)


End file.
